The Pattern
by Carmelle
Summary: After an airplane crashes under curious circumstances, FBI Agent Katniss Everdeen must break all of her boundaries and find a deluded scientist and his son who could be the only one's able to save her partner's life. Together, they race the clock and make various discoveries about the world, themselves, and those closest. Based off of the show Fringe.
1. Pilot

_**A/N:**_

_**Please read.**_

_**Hello, this is my 3**__**rd**__** story. It's based off the pilot of one of my favorite shows: Fringe. I really hope I did it justice. Most of the dialogue is directly from the show. It you haven't seen it, I suggest you do. I would really like feedback. I'm not sure if I'll be continuing this story, so if you like it, please, say so. I will be updating my other stories soon. **_

_**So in this Peeta is OOC because that is how Peter is in the show before he shows who he really is. There are some hints of his true character in this. If you like it and I continue, at some point, he'll be nicer. Anyway, despite the beginning of this story, if I continue, this will be completely Everlark. Katniss is a bit emotional but, given the ordeal she goes through, I'd expect as much. **_

_**My OC is Walter. He's not really an OC. He's just Walter in the show. This isn't a crossover though. He's just the only character who I couldn't incorporate as someone from the books. I was thinking, if I were to continue, this story would be the first season, and I would make sequels for the other seasons.**_

_**Please tell me what you think, I really need feedback.**_

_**I do NOT own The Hunger Games Trilogy or and thing that involves the show Fringe.**_

_**-RC**_

* * *

The plane shudders as an electrical storm strikes its wings. The seatbelt light turns orange and everyone complies with its order. Hands clench the arms on their chairs, interracial seatmates attempt to interact, and an auburn haired man inhales acutely with unyielding shoulders. He bends down, putting his head between his knees, attempting to keep the panic at bay. Next to him, an older Indian man tries to calm him with talk of safety and the passing of this bump in the flight. After an uneasy response, he goes back to his book ignoring the troubled man once again. Then, a briefcase is lifted from between his legs and opened. Inside, rests an insulin pen.

He takes out a cartridge of medicine, unbuttons the bottom half of his shirt, and injects the concoction. He very obviously unwell so, he gets out of his seat, despite the instability, and starts toward the bathroom. A flight attendant comes behind him to force the man back into his chair as they hit a rough patch of turbulence. He stumbles along in palpable pain as the falls to his knees. The woman grabs his shoulder to yank him back into a standing position and back to his feet when she sees his face. His skin slips loosely from his face, liquefying in front of her. Her screams alarm the other passengers. They continue as the infection spreads. The cabin darkens due to the storm as the horrid images remain. Eventually the plane lands hours after with no survivors.

* * *

She sighs as her head hits the pillow, sheets draped around her body. Her skin is glowing, glistening as an easy smile slips on to her face. The crummy motel bed squeaks around him as he sits up to see her face.

"Oh, my god…" She laughs.

"What?" He asks while brushing away a strand of her hair from her face.

"This bed, it's the loudest I've ever heard." Another smile erupts on her face and her grey eyes scan his face.

"Better than that seminar though."

"Oh, that was horrible!"

"I know. I just kept watching you, ignoring Chief's droning on and on."

"Am I supposed to take that as a compliment?" She giggles.

"I actually had to turn my chair away from you so people wouldn't notice." Her face changes drastically, happiness changing into sadness.

"We can't keep sneaking around like this…" She groans.

"I know. It is rather unfortunate to know the manager at this hotel by name but just being with you, however briefly, makes my day."

She kisses him again and it quickly gets passionate. Just as they're about to have another go, his cell rings, interrupting their bliss. He sits up and she watches the muscles of his back flex and move.

"Agent Gale Hawthorne." He says into the phone, "Are there any more details? ... Okay, yes sir… Be there soon." He hangs up and turns back to the woman lying in bed waiting for him. She looks at him questioningly and he responds, "Incident at Logan. We have to go." She nods her head sadly and stands to get dressed. He drinks in the view as, he himself, attempts to look presentable. He goes to the door and she meets him, "I'll see you soon," They share a long, desire filled kiss, and he turns to leave. Just before he's out the door and loses his courage, he utters three little words. "I love you." He leaves with a second glance. She stands rigid, after taking in a short gasp. Her hand meets her mouth, covering her smile. Then, her phone rings. She picks it up, composes herself, and answers.

"Agent Katniss Everdeen."

* * *

_Logan Airport_

Flakes of snow rain down against the black sky. The runway is lit up, Katniss stands with red cheeks and a large scarf wrapped around her neck. She stands in line with a dozen other Federal Agents arguing protocol. She walks right past them, her flowing braid getting whipped around by the wind, and makes her way to Agent Johanna Mason.

"What's up?"

"Just basking in the beauty of inter-agency harmony and cooperation." She sarcastically replies. "Alright, the scoop. Hamburg flight loses contact 3 hours in. It entered our air space with no communication. We sent in jet escorts who reported stains on widows and no signs of life."

"Stains?"

She nods, "Organic matter."

"And they let it land? Who was controlling it? Autopilot?"

"Yep, and it landed right on time. Unlike every flight I've ever taken." They share a quick smile.

Behind them, a black van pulls up and out comes Gale Hawthorne talking on the phone. "Believe me; we'll be happy to treat you as family too!" He says calm but harsh. She smiles at him in a friendly way and the 3 of them greet each other. They turn at the noise of a loud whistle. In front of them stands a scruffy, under groomed man who has a sense of power to him.

"Hello, I'm Special Agent Haymitch Abernathy, D.C. sent me to overlook this case. It will be run through Homeland Security and all decisions must be authorized by me first. As soon as the last team gets here, select individuals will go into the aircraft in hazmat suits. From CIA: Leevy, FBI: Mason, Hawthorne…" Katniss tunes out the rest of the names, disturbed by the news. She runs after Abernathy.

"Um, Agent Everdeen, FBI Inter-Agency liaison."

"Yeah, I know who you are." He sighs.

"With all due respect, sir, but, I'd like to -"

"A liaison on a task force." He grumbles.

"Excuse me sir, but I'd prefer my information first hand." She says sternly.

"You want to go in, Liaison? Suit up!"

An hour later, Katniss stands with the small team, listening to the large locked door unhinge and the hiss of decompression. She steps through, shining a flash light at the carnage. Skeletons line the seats, their guts piled on the floor of the cabin, a colorful splatter all along the walls.

Katniss's eyes widen at the gory scene, her breathing uneven. Johanna notices and asks, "You okay, Everdeen?" She nods quickly.

* * *

A line of cars are backed up on the highway. A dark truck is checked and the same auburn haired man asks, "What's going on?"

The guard with the flashlight shines it in his face. "Nothing you need to concern yourself with, move along."

The man nods but, smirks after passing.

* * *

The media had gotten wind of the Logan flight. People were a buzz at the office, shouting out suggestions and new information. Any thought Katniss had was shot down by Abernathy. Mason walks up behind her. "A guard at a storage facility reports he saw a 'Middle Eastern looking man' hand a white guy a briefcase."

"There you go, liaison. Go check that lead out."

Katniss huffs and asks, "_That?_ That's what I'm to investigate?"

"Yes, now's your time to _liaise_.

She scowls and adds, "While I'm out, do you want me to pick up your dry cleaning, too?" She gets a few astonished looks from her co-workers.

Abernathy laughs and tilts his head back. "Yeah, would you mind?" She grabs her jacket and huffs.

* * *

Together, she and Gale slip out to inspect the storage units. The whole time she grumbles about Haymitch, "The guy's pissed at me because his best friend rapes three girls and I put him away! How does that make me the bad guy, I mean-" He stops her rambling with a kiss and when they break apart she smiles and looks up at him, "You said you loved me…"

"Well, you didn't say it back so I didn't make say anything."

"You said you loved me… that was a big deal… Alright, I've never been good at this so, here goes… What I wanted to say was I love you, too." He smiles and lifts her up by her waist, hugging her closely.

The move to a nearby storage unit and see it's locked. Gale kneels down and starts to pick the lock. "What are you doing?" She asks.

"What are you doing? I'm a Federal Agent." He replies. She smiles. They continue to check to units, finding only junk, until they come across a makeshift lab. It's full of rats and test tubes. They walk inside to see 3 mutated animals and some hazmat suits. "We need to get Chemical Transport out here now."

"I'm on it." She walks outside to get better signal. Gale continues opening units until he hears a noise behind him. The auburn haired man stands behind him for just a split second before he runs away. Gale runs in pursuit until he sees Katniss. He yells for her to come and help. She chases after the two and when they make a loop back to the labs, the man pulls out a detonator, and blows Gale and the labs up. Katniss is propelled back, her phone still dialing for back up.

* * *

Her eyes slowly open to white lights. She stands up and looks around. She's in the hospital. Panicked, she begins asking, "Gale! Where's Agent Hawthorne?! Is he alright?!"

Her question is answered only with sad looks. "Ms. Everdeen, you were very lucky today. Your wounds could have been much more severe-"

Katniss stands and heads for the door, "I came in with a man- Where is he?!"

"Miss, Agent Hawthorne, along with the injuries he sustained from the blast, was exposed to a synthetic compound that must've been a part of the work done in those labs-"

"Can something be done about it?!"

"The doctors here- they've never seen anything like it." They lead her out the room and down the hallway. She is in scrubs and has a mask around her face. All very sterile surroundings.

"What he has, it's not contagious, it's just best to keep Agent Hawthorne away from other contaminants." She walks into the cold room to see him. His skin is clear and she can see every muscle and vein inside his body. "We've lowered his core temperature to slow the progress of this… disease." She goes up and takes hold of his freezing hand. She stares at his face for a while until, in a break of character for her, tears stream down her face silently. "Agent Everdeen, if nothing is done… he will die in a week's time. He only has so long before his organs shut down…"

* * *

_Federal Building_

Katniss sits in her office, hair tied up in a bun and out of the way. She has a white bandage going across her forehead from a wound caused by the explosion. With a determined look on her face, she rifles through the Agency's database, searching words like "MEDICAL", "INFECTION",

"TISSUE", "CHEMICAL", "HARDENING", "CLEAR", and of all the articles that pop up, one name stands out: Dr. Walter Mellark.

She hurriedly runs down the hall to her superior, knocking on his office door. She enters soon after and walks up behind him awkwardly. "Uh, it's me: Liaison."

"I told you to go home-" She interrupts him by dropping Dr. Mellark's file on his desk.

"I found a connection." She states simply. "Walter Mellark. Genius theoretical scientist. He did experiments, and I think he might have the answer on how to save Agent Hawthorne."

"Says he's been institutionalized for the past 17 years." Abernathy states with a look of incredulousness.

Katniss explains, "An assistant was killed in his lab. He was blamed and then rumors started to pile up about using human test subjects. He was charged with manslaughter but deemed mentally unfit to stand trial."

"So, your prime suspect has been in St. Clair's for almost 2 decades?"

"Yes, but-"

"It says here he's not allowed visitors."

"I know-"

"Why are you so sure this is the guy?"

"All of the files-"

"Find his next of kin then." He quickly dismisses her, not letting her finish a single sentence.

"He does have a son…" She grouses.

* * *

_Baghdad, Iraq_

Katniss sits in a cab, reading the boy's file out loud, "High school dropout, IQ of 190- 50 points north of genius. Hasn't been employed longer than 2 months…"

Peeta Mellark sits in front of two very wealthy Iraqi business men, persuading them to hire him for an odd job. "My resume is hardly traditional. But in these parts, traditional seems increasingly irrelevant. A hundred billion dollars sunk into infrastructure, you're barely keeping the lights on. So, you need construction oversight of a 600 mile pipeline to carry crude from the field at Kirkuk to the Port of Ceyhan. A job well outside the Green zone, I might add while I'm still alive to do so. You'll need someone with a handle on the laws of hydrodynamic resistance –- heat exchange in oil mixture flow – a working knowledge of mixed integer programs so you can re-size the pipes you're going to use across uneven terrain, that's if you want to minimize construction costs." The men looked pleased but they start to speak their native tongue, to leave him out of their decision process. "Oh, didn't I mention? I speak Arabic too." He smiles, _charming_.

He runs down the stairs, leaving the men behind, confident about the job. But, someone stops him. "Excuse me, Peeta Mellark?" An American? He raises his eyebrows at the brunette.

"Well, what can I do for you, Sweetheart?" He asks.

She reaches into her pocket ant pulls out a badge, the smile from his face drops, "I'm Agent Katniss Everdeen and I need to speak with you."

"Okay…" He says, cautiously.

"Have you heard of Flight 627?"

"Yeah, the one from Hamburg."

"I think, you can help me with that."

"Sorry, I'm not your guy," he says and begins to walk away.

She runs up around him and he can see the desperation in her eyes but it doesn't faze him. "No, you are Walter Mellark's son, yes?" Peeta bristles at the name. "I really need to speak with him-"

"And he's only allowed to see relatives. Sorry, I can't help you." He says and continues going.

"I know why you're here." She says loudly. "I read the file."

He quickly turns around, "What file?"

"The one the CIA would say doesn't exist." The look in his eyes says it all. She's got him. "You come with me or I tell certain people about your whereabouts." He scowls at her, but quickly masks it. "When do we leave?" He asks with a smile.

* * *

They sit in an airplane, across from one another. Katniss is on the phone, in distress, "Did they explain _how _it was getting worse?! Were they doing anything?" She listens for a moment and her face falls. "Well, thanks, Jo... Yeah… I'll see you at home." She sits back and stares at Mr. Mellark.

"Everything alright?" He asks.

"Not in the slightest, but you're giving me hope." She grins slightly.

"Alright, so, question. My father, how's he involved in all this. He's brilliant but self- centered, and growing up, I was led to believe he was just doing research for a toothpaste company. My gut tells me your friend isn't going to be saved by a tube of Colgate. So, obviously that's not the case." He says.

There is a pause, "I don't think that was a question?"

"I'm asking you to tell me who my father was, _really_?"

"He worked, in the basement of Harvard, not on toothpaste, but a classified US Amy experimental program. He delved in the impossible, Fringe Sciences, pushing the boundary of possibility. They gave him any and all resources he would need to attempt these tests. They considered him a genius."

"Fringe science?" He asked, with disbelief. "As in 'psuedoscience'?" She nods.

"Teleportation, genetic mutation, astral projection, _reanimation_?" She nods again.  
"Wait, so you're telling me my father was some real life Dr. Frankenstein?"

She waits a while before speaking, "Does this explain some of his behavior when you were younger?"

"Yeah, childhood solved. Thanks." He snipes sardonically.

She looks down.

* * *

_Saint Clair's_

Everything is a cold grey. Together they walk toward his father's cell. Katniss has no hesitation but Peeta stops, "I'm going to wait in the lobby…" He clearly can't go through with seeing his father.

She turns back to him and with a nod, says, "Alright." As they reach the end of the corridor, and orderly opens the door to cell 243. There sits and older man, early 60's, sitting on a chair and staring at a blank wall. "Hello?" She calls and he turns around slowly. She sees a long grey beard forming in his face matching his head.

"I knew someone would come." He smiles sweetly. "Eventually." They transport the pair to the cafeteria and at first they are silent. He sits, staring blankly at empty space. Every now and then, he rocks back and forth and fidgets with his fingers, most likely from almost 2 decades of shock, drug, and psychotherapy.

"And you said- when… when did this happen?"

"The plane was four days ago, Agent Hawthorne was injured the next day."

Walter sits there and thinks. Then suddenly he sneezes, snapping him out of his reverie and looking at Agent Everdeen. "And- and is the dermis?" Katniss looks at him for a moment before he continues, "Translucent… Can you see the muscular tissue? Indurated?"

"On Agent Hawthone? Yes. You can see through his skin…"

That's-– oh, that's not good. When you can see through skin. Tricky. Advanced. Like that – tricky. Tricktricktricky…" He rambles off.

"Dr. Mellark?" She asks trying to bring his mind back to the subject, "Can it be reversed?" He continues to look off, with a disgusted look. "What is it?"

"They have… this dreadful pudding here on Sundays… Butterscotch- used to be a favorite of mine…" Katniss's heart sinks. He's crazy, his son was right, but she wasn't going to just give up.

"It's Thursday."

"Oh… Oh, that's great news…" He trails off and the turns to look her in the eye, "I'm sorry that I'm like this now." Her face softens and she is quick to his aid.

"Oh, no, don't be sorry."

"I—-I'm thinking things. Some things don't even make it. To my mouth. Some do, though. This place… their… choice of therapies…" He looks down with tears in his eyes, "…have consequ—cons—con— consequences."

"It's okay, really…" She says softly.

"It can be reversed," And just like that, he's a deluded scientist again, "Your colleague. We had- l- lab animals… some were afflicted but sa- saved."

"Good, so what do we have to do?"

"If your colleague has been exposed to a compound based on my work, two obvious questions arise... Neither of which I remember…" He sighs, "Oh yes, first is the how... this individual, who must have significant scientific apprehension, access and then duplicate my work? And why?" He stills for a moment before continuing, "That's two, yes, but there's a third, what…" He mumbles, but then looks like he had an epiphany.

"Dr. Mellark, please, I need you to remember…"

"I do, I- I do. But first, you came here with my son." She raises her eyebrows at this, curious as to how he knows, "I'm not allowed visitors, except direct family. So, unless that order was lifted… It's a simple, 'If, Then.' statement. If you are here, then so is he. I- I would like to see him."

She goes out into the lobby. "He asked for you," She calls toward Peeta.

"Oh, thanks, Sweetheart, I really appreciate that."

She gets defensive, "Hey, I didn't tell him! And call me 'Sweetheart' once more, I'd really like that." She quips laced of sarcasm.

He stares, pissed and stomps into the cafeteria. Peeta then finds himself standing in front of his father, well more like a shell of his father. He attempts impassiveness but still ends up showing his vulnerability.

"Hello." He says curtly. Walter stares up and inspects him.

"I thought you'd be fatter."

"You thought I'd be fatter. Those are the first words you say to me?" He laughs clinically.

"As a boy you were rounder."

"Until the summer, _before_ high school. Although, I'm not surprised you don't remem-" Walter quickly stands up and rushes toward him, pulling at the lids of his eyes. "Hey, what are you doing," he quickly pushes his father off of him. "What the hell are you touching me for?!" Just then Agent Everdeen enters, stunned at the sight she sees.

"Good, thank goodness, pupils- pupils are good." He then turns toward Katniss, "The third question- How advanced is your colleagues condition, something I- I am not able to deduce without seeing first hand. Which is to say I must tergiversate. "

"What?" She asks, stunned at his fast paced words.

"Leave. He wants to leave." Peeta rolls his eyes.

"I must see Mr. Hawthorne myself -which I am unable to do under present law unless signed out by a legal guardian, which can only be…" He looks at Peeta, "…once again… a relative." Katniss turns toward him with a hopeful gleam in her eyes.

Peeta stares at her, shocked, "No, no, Katniss. No - forget it."

Katniss turns, pissed, to Walter, "He'll do it."

"I will not do it!"

"One phone call, that's all it takes- you want me to make it?! 'Cause I've got a phone in my pocket." They stare at each other for a few moments, and then she whips out her phone. "Now it's _out_ of my pocket." He glares at her and then stomps away back to the lobby. He's in the process of signing the guardianship papers, supervised by Katniss, while Walter gets ready to leave.

When they're ready to depart, Walter comes out, clean-shaven, looking surprisingly good. He smiles at the pair. They head off the premises to Katniss's car. "This is spectacular," he says, wide eyed examining the vehicle.

"Thanks." She smiles.

They sit in her van, she's driving, Peeta sits in the passenger's seat, and Walter sits in the back. He stares out the widow with fascination, child-like. Over the radio, there are various reports on flight 627. She turns the volume down and directs a question toward Walter, "Dr. Mellark?" He looks up at the front of the car. "I was wondering, has anyone else had access to your work?"

"Well, the- the assistants had bits and pieces… God, I suppose, if you go for that sort of thing… I think the only person who really knew what I was doing was Bee."

"Bee?"

"Beetee Wright, he and I shared a lab."

"_The_ Beetee Wright? Founder of Massive Dynamic?" Peeta asks, irritated.

"I'm sorry, what? I- I don't know what that is." Walter asks.

"Great! One becomes an institutionalized psychopath, the other goes on to be one of the richest men in the world." Peeta grouses and shakes his head "It's just a _tiny_ company, Walter." He says moodily.

"Sometimes-– I don't know if I mentioned this, but sometimes I hear someone whistling. Row, Row, Row Your Boat, late at night, down the hall. Way down, near the windows. And I can never be quite sure…that it isn't me. You ever have that?" Walter rambles.

"That's my father." Peeta says with fake-pride.

* * *

_Hospital_

The unlikely trio enters the quarantined area. Every detail of the hospital is surprisingly new to Walter. They walk towards Gale and Katniss's spirit falls even further. Hiss muscles are fading, showing his internal organs. She's not the only troubled one.

Peeta is disturbed, "…Wow." He states.

Katniss looks to Walter, hoping he has a miracle to offer. She sees he's not even looking at Agent Hawthorne; he's absorbed in a light fixture on the ceiling. "Dr. Mellark?" She calls, to get his attention. He breaks out of his trance, picks up a clip board full of Gale's information, and flips through it.

"Ginger Ale?" He asks, "Is there any ginger ale, I haven't had some for quite a time." He states. Peeta shakes his head, thinking about how nuts the situation is. Katniss raises her eyebrows but calls in her assistant Agent.

"Rue, can you bring the doctor some Ginger Ale?"

She nods and leaves, while Walter looks around the room. He sees medical equipment and pulls on a pair of gloves and carefully picks up a scalpel. Peeta on him is a second grabbing his arm. "Whoa, whoa, what are you doing?"

"I need a tissue sample and you're squeezing very tightly, Peeta."

He turns to Katniss, "Does this not concern you?" He asks.

It's not an easy decision, but she makes it. "Let him go." Peeta, fuming, does as she asks but immediately crosses his arms in a silent protest.

"Petri dish?" Walter holds out his hand in front of Peeta.

"I'm not your assistant." He grumbles, but gets it anyway. For the first time, they're working together. Walter carefully scrapes away a bit of skin from Agent Hawthorne's leg and places the sample in the dish.

"Alright, I need to get this to my lab straight away."

"Your what?" Katniss asks.

"My lab. Harvard basement. I have my sample, let's go."

"Dr. Mellark, you do realize your lab was shut down after you left."

"I'm sorry- what?"

Then, cruelly blunt, Peeta interrupts, "Wake up! It's gone, just like you've been, for the past 17 years. You have no lab." Walters face goes red and, resembling a temper tantrum in a 60 year old man, he begins to mutter.

"It- it can't be gone. - No—no no no- the foundation is a golden rectangle! I can't be expected to make real progress if I don't understand the proportions of my space! The work itself won't be consistent-"

"I- what's a golden rectan-?" Katniss starts alarmed at Dr. Mellark's outburst.

Walter begins to shout, "WHAT'S THE GOLDEN RECTANGLE?! THE PERFECT RECTANGLE!" He turns behind him and flips over a medical tray. He continues mumbling angrily and then punches the wall behind him. Katniss's eyes widen at the sight and she begins to think that Dr. Mellark is too insane to handle.

Peeta leans over to her and hurriedly says, "We need to get him back right away." She's about to nod but then she sees Johanna outside the room.

"Excuse me." She says to him. Then, rushes out to Jo and smiles uneasily.

"How's Gale?" She asks.

Katniss responds, solemnly, "Bad- worse."

"Mellark?" Mason asks.

"Utterly maniacal, but also our only hope. Listen- I need to question Beetee Wright. Could you set that up?"

"_The_ Beetee Wright? Massive Dynamic?" Katniss nods. "I'll do my best."

"Wait, Kat, I also have this." She hands her a file and her eyes widen as she reads it.

* * *

_Abernathy's Office_

"Liaison when'd you get-?" He asks.

"I need to talk to you," She says rushing into the office. "I think there's a mole in our department." Abernathy freezes and he stares at her cold and suspiciously, "-Are you not going to-?"

"I know there is. What I'd like to know is how _you_ do?"

"That's why you're here, isn't it? To babysit us?"

"Start talking, _now_!" He growls.

She hesitates a moment, wondering if he could possibly be the mole, but ends up telling him anyway. "We recovered records from a cell phone found at the storage facility. There was a call made immediately after the Hamburg flight landed—- a call that was routed through this building."

"Who else knows about this?"

"Agent Mason."

"No one else?"

"No one else." He was very serious on the matter, she was very worried. "…What the hell is going on?"

"The integrity of this office is being handled."

"…what do you know about the—"

"It is neither your job nor your responsibility to get involved –- so I appreciate your bringing the matter to my attention just as I expect you to appreciate the fact that you work under me. You're prohibited from discussing this with anyone inside or out of the office, is that understood?" Her nostrils flare in anger but, she calms enough to nod. "I do my job, you do yours."

"Then it should be noted: I have successfully had Dr. Walter Mellark released from St. Clare's and he requires his old lab back."

"…I'm sorry, what?"

"Harvard basement."

"Yeah, congratulations, I'm sure the University'd be thrilled to welcome back their-"

"I'm just trying to do my job and to do it, I need him."

"I would like to think that your persistence on this case is an act of severe professionalism but I can't help but think there was something going on between you and Agent Hawthorne."

She puts on her best poker face, and replies, "You want answers, get the lab for Mellark." She storms out of the office and rushes to leave the building.

* * *

_Harvard University_

The lights turn on, illuminating the large workspace. White sheets cover large pieces of machinery. "So much happened here," Walter says and turns around to the duo, "And so much is about to."

Agent Everdeen looks around uneasily and Peeta Mellark stands behind her, full of resentment.

Peeta begins to speak in a mocking tone, "Wow, here we are. In the Golden Rectangle itself. I'm pumped."

"What makes a rectangle…golden?" Everdeen asks.

"It's got a length-to-width ratio equal to a number called 'phi.' Greeks discovered it - turns up in math, Renaissance art, music – Dali used it in The Sacrament of the Last Supper - Debussy's Reflections In Water - nature too: seashells, branches on plant stems…" Peeta says casually, revealing his underlying genius. Katniss is quietly stunned by it.

"Dr. Mellark?" She asks after a moment of silence, "I ordered a standard forensics package, will you need anything else?" Walter touches one of the water-damaged walls.

"There's an unexpected level of corrosion in the insulating sheathing. Drainage planes- vapor barriers-"

"You know, pop, some people just say walls." Peeta quips.

"An optical coherence tomography for flesh study, please." Walter begins answering her question. "Two thousand pounds of silicon—" Katniss nods at Rue, who starts writing this all down. "-at least five anonymous blood samples from voluntary donors, please. A micro-organism detector, - NASA grade, obviously - there's still NASA, yes?"

"Yes." Katniss says.

Walter pulls a white sheet off a large SALINE ISOLATION TANK. He shouts out in joy "She's still here! This tank was the best!" Then he continues with his list. "Oh-and a five-year-old Ankole-Watusi."

"- a what?" Rue asks quietly.

Peeta laughs loudly and tells her, "It's a cow. He wants a cow."

"Pure-bred, not cross-bred, this is important - with a mature weight of 1100 pounds and internal fat average of 2.37."

"- are you- is he joking?" Katniss asks his son.

"Genetically, cows and humans are distinguishable by only a few lines of DNA. Ethical test subjects."

"Where'd you learn all this? MIT? "She smirks. Of course, he knows she's messing with him since he faked a degree from that particular institution.

He smiles at her joke, and for the first time it's genuine.

* * *

Katniss sits alone on a bench, writing something down on a piece of paper. She is interrupted by a cup of coffee being wiggled in her face. She looks up to see Peeta, unhappy, as usual; it just seems to be his _way_.

She takes the cup and smiles, "Thanks." He sits beside her as she sips the coffee, going back to scanning.

There's a beat of awkward silence as he figures out how to ask her a question, until, finally, "So what else did my file say. About yours truly. How bad was it?"

She halts and looks at him.

"I'm really not at liberty to talk about it."

Peeta scoffs and says,"- well liberate yourself, because I came back here, I think I deserve the truth- what did the file say?" They stare at each other for a moment, and a few seconds later, after seeing her guilt reflected on her face, he comes to a revelation. "…there was no file, was there?" He's baffled.

"I needed you back here." She says innocently enough.

"Wait a minute, so you were what? Bluffing?" His mouth is gaping open, unhappy, but also pleasantly surprised that she was able to trick him.

She shrugs her shoulders, "I was desperate."

"I'm usually good at reading people- I mean that's what I do-"

"I could see you were in trouble. Anyone could see that."

"Yeah. It just feels safer there than here I guess." He sighs and shakes his head in disbelief, "I could have stayed…"

"Mafia?" She asks quietly and he laughs.

"The guy literally goes by the name Big Eddie. I swear to God, I'm not making that up."

"You owe money to a guy nicknamed Big Eddie?"

"Nope. He had his name legally changed to Big Eddie…" Then his face becomes regretful, "I was never a gambler. Never. But a couple of years ago? It was just…" He looks down, "…crazy."

And Katniss looks at him…really studies his handsome, haunted face.

* * *

That night, Walter's running around, rambling and trying to explain his theory to and anxious Katniss and a still skeptical Peeta.

"Agent Hawthorne, is not infected by a virus. It's a chemical reaction. I should be able to synthesize a counter-agent that reverses-"

"You can save him? She asks hopefully.

"Hey, hey, hey, don't give her false hope, Walter." Peeta interrupts.

"It's not false. I can create it if I had the precise inventory of the storage facility when it detonated, then I can-"

"We don't have that." She says sadly, "It all went up, everything, and the man, the one who could have the answers got away and Gale's the only one who saw his face." She looks down gloomily and sighs, "How much longer does he have left?"

"At the current rate of crystallization, cellular degradation, the slowing of his natural-"

"How long?!" She yells, having had enough of his tedious sentences.

"24 hours, then his brain will no longer be able to oxygenate itself." She can't breathe, as those word sink into her skin. Walter does his best to console her, despite his outward appearance. "I'm sorry I can't offer you a safer solution."

"Wh- what?" She asks.

"Didn't I mention it?" He asks her. The shared dream state, oh, were you not listening?"

Peeta pipes up, "Walter, whatever you think you said, you didn't say." He frowns.

"Shared dream state?" Katniss asks.

"The human brain generates a quantifiable, measurable electric field. I posited, in 1976, that it's possible to synchronize fields from two distinct minds, and allow the sharing of information across an unconscious state. Like a string between two tin cans."

Peeta turns to Katniss, "And what's great about that is that it's insane."

She ignores him and asks Walter, "So you're saying I can talk to Gale in a _coma_ and he can tell me what the suspect looks like?"

"Oh, more than that, you could-" Peeta scoffs, "-This isn't an exact science-"

"No, no, of course not." He retorts sarcastically.

"-You would have access to his memories." Walter continues with Katniss, "Assuming there's no extensive brain damage. Of course, you'd have to be severely drugged, have an electromagnetic probe inserted at the base of your skull and float without clothes in the old tank."

Peeta rolls his eyes because, surely, now he thinks Katniss would let him take Walter back to St. Claire's but instead she asks, "Have you done this before?"

"I…think so. I mean yes, but years ago- it's… " He smiles, " a bit …foggy. Actually, I used this technique to extract information from a corpse. You can do that, as long as they're not dead longer than six hours."

"Yeah, because after six hours, they're _really_ dead." Peeta says mockingly.

"And you could do this with me?" Katniss asks.

"Which." Walter responds.

"This whole thing- talk to Gale— see his memories-"

"Of course. He'd just need to be brought here to the lab, kept on ice—"

"So what drugs?"

"Psychotropics. Mix of Serotonin, Neurontin, Lithium Carbonate, Lysurgic Acid Diethylamide—"

"Are you serious?" Asks Peeta, "That last one, it's LSD!"

"It will take some time to synthesize. Would you care to help?" He asks his son.

"No! No, this is crazy! Look, Katniss, I know you've been very stressed lately and you haven't slept since Iraq but, this man," He points towards his father, "Will _kill_ you! He wants to make you overdose, put a steel rod in your head, and dump you naked in a tank full of water!"

"Oh, no." Walter interrupts, "I don't _want_ to; I'm just saying I can."

"Katniss, what in the world would make you do such a thing?!"

"Knowing Gale would do it for me." Peeta huffs.

"Fine, but, I'm not helping."

He turns to walk away when she shouts at him, "I'll have you arrested for impeding a Federal Investigation!"

He whips back at her with a sarcastic smile, "Refusing to cook LSD for a Federal Agent? Somehow, I don't think those charges will stick!"

"Then I'll call Fat Eddie." She smirks holding up her cell phone.

"_Big_ Eddie. And I told you that in confidence." He snarls.

"And let's keep that between us, alright?" She says.

"Wow, you are all literally insane!" He turns and walks away, not telling her no, and not telling her yes.

Jo enters after he storms out, looking back at him curiously. "Everdeen, you got a minute?" She calls. "So, I heard back from Massive Dynamic. You're due out there to speak to his CEP, Alma Coin. Beetee Wright is apparently out of the country, but she's happy to speak with you." She says with a fake smile.

"Happy, really?" She asks skeptically. A loud 'moo' break's Johanna's stare.

"There's a cow… Kat, _what_ is going on here?"

"Were about to make some LSD." Walter calls to her.

"Don't listen to him…" She says with a roll of her eyes. Katniss goes back to the table to get her jacket, shooting Walter a 'shh!' look and leaving alongside Mason.

* * *

The Med-Techs roll in Agent Gale Hawthorne, who, is looking much worse, and Peeta directs them to a platform in the lab. "I guess over here- is this okay, Walter?"

Walter is mixing various solutions, and burning them on a Bunsen, prepping the LSD. "Yes, yes. Good. And son. You can call me Mom." Walter continues his work while Peeta shakes his head.

Rue is by the tank pouring in Epsom Salt and asks, "The whole box, Doctor?"

"Yes dear, I'm sure." He continues boiling and mixing with his son next to him and begins to speak his thoughts out loud. "I feel normal. Working."

"Yes, because bootlegging in a basement really is the picture of normalcy." Peeta jibes.

Walter starts leaning in to inspect his son's face. It's quite unnerving. "I'd like to check your blood pressure."

"My blood pressure's fine." He says with a sharp edge.

"Your flesh tone suggests you're suffering from arterial hypertension. He reaches out to touch Peeta, who snaps away, defensive.

"Hey, don't tell me what I'm suffering from – and there are no visible symptoms of hypertension –"

Walter has been pouring chemicals which suddenly ignite and a large fire erupts.

Rue blurts out a scream and Walter's lab coat is on fire.-– Peeta quickly grabs a hose and douses water on Walter's chest, putting the fire out.

Walter falls to the floor, heart pounding and fearful. Peeta is suddenly forced to comfort the man. "Hey, pop- it's okay. Listen, you're fine, it was nothing-"

"-that was careless- bad form-"

"-and I put it out. You're okay. "

"- I wasn't- I didn't see-"

"It's okay, I'm here."

"That could've—- been worse- I'm so sorry - so sorry - so sorry - so

sorry… "

And in this odd, heartbreaking moment, Peeta is reminded just how damaged, how vulnerable, and ill prepared for the world his father truly is. And he couldn't be less comfortable about it.

"It's okay."

* * *

_Alma Coin's Office_

The atmosphere is sharp, white and pristine, just like the woman who stands before her. Clean, cut, strict. "Thank you for seeing me." Katniss says politely standing to shake the woman's hand.

"No problem. Dr. Wright should be back by next week; hopefully I can help you in the meantime."

"Well, we've been looking into the work of Dr. Walter Mellark."

"Yes he was an old colleague of Bee's."

"Well, we have reason to believe his work was connected to the unexplained phenomena of Flight 627."

"Dr. Mellark's."

"Yes, we asked if anyone had access to his studies and he said the founder of this company."

"Yes, I know, they shared a lab in the 70's."

"Until 1983, actually. So, we were wondering if Massive Dynamic was researching any of these technologies. And if so, the identities of any and all employees who may have access."

"You're suggesting Beetee Wright stole intellectual property from Mellark?"

"I'm suggesting that, since they had a common workspace, the focus of their research might have been analogous. Mutually-influenced."

"Unfortunately, I'm not at liberty to discuss our companies, their research or employees. The security of our proprietary information is a very real concern to us".

"Certainly. As I'm sure is national security. Can you tell me if any employees have in the recent past been dismissed because of suspicion of espionage of any kind?"

"I do not have the authority to discuss such matters."

No, Katniss does not like Ms. Coin.

"How long have you worked for Massive Dynamic?"

"Six years."

"And you…still enjoy it."

"I owe this company my life. And that's no exaggeration."

"…how so?"

"I was a runner, for most of my life. Always had been. During the '97 Boston Marathon, I felt strangely tired. Had a pain in my upper back that I'd never had. I assumed it was just another pleasure of advancing age- until one morning at the office- our building at the time was in Charlestown- Dr. Wright saw that I was in discomfort and insisted I go for a CAT scan. Which revealed stage three cancer, two metastases.

"The cancer had spread so severely that I had to have my right arm amputated that week." Katniss's eyes dart the hand she had just shook. Coin noticed and lifted up the sleep of the black jacket. Then she pulled down a silicone skin from the elbow down to reveal a completely robotic hand and arm. The mechanics' casing is clear so she could see the inter-working parts. "That first scanner that found my cancer was built by this company. The robotic-assist tools used in my surgery and the drugs I took afterward were developed and manufactured by Massive Dynamic. And my replacement limb…"

Alma lifts both her real and fake translucent hand and wiggles

all her fingers. It's uncanny. "…was designed by Wright himself."

Katniss was astonished, "I shook your hand, I couldn't tell."

"Massive Dynamic is a remarkable company, although, due to the confidentiality agreement, I can't say why." She smirks.

Agent Everdeen's phone then rings and she picks it up. "Hello?"

Peeta's sardonic voice is on the other line, "Honey, your _drugs_ are ready."

Katniss with a straight face says, "I'm on my way."

* * *

_The Lab_

Rue sits on a table, eating from a back of chips, like it's a show and what she sees is Walter, preparing various syringes- each with a different color drug. Peeta is calibrating various machines to test her brain functions. Unlike the digital age outside, wires snake around all surfaces. Peeta glance at Katniss disapprovingly as she enters clad in just a robe and her black undergarments. Walter moves to her, holding a tangle of sensors on wires.

"This may be a silly question. In fact, I may have already asked you. But you're aware of how serious this is- the real risks involved?"

"…yes, I understand. And yeah, we had that conversation."

"Oh, okay. Sorry. Peeta come place these."

He walks up to her, sneaking a look or two at her body. He places the sensors on her tan chest, stomach, and legs. It's a strangely intimate moment. He leans toward her and says, "I hope he's really worth it."

Walter comes up behind her with a syringe. "I'm going to give you some anesthetic." She nods as she flips her hair to the side of her head, long and flowing. Then he stretches some skin at the nape of her neck, places the needle on her skin, and pushes it in. She doesn't flinch but it stings a little. Then he picks up the metal probe and places it in the same area. "Ready?" Before she can respond, he pushes it in. She gaps and falls forward, clutching on to Peeta's arms.

Walter walks away, quietly mumbling to himself. He checks her vitals while Peeta guides her to sit down. Then they open the large tank with a long, low creak. Peeta walks up with two colored needles; the drugs, she's nervous but does her best not to show it. He sees right through her. "Have you ever been on a trip before?" He asks with a smile. Not a sincere one, more like a conceited one.

"Yes!" She says, defensive. "I have been to college."

"Which college?"

"Maine State."

"Nope, you've never tripped before. Not like this." She scowls, but stays silent. He injects one right after the other.

Walter calls to her from the tank, "One is to relax you and the other to rip open your consciousness." Peeta and Walter guide Katniss into the tank. "The salt will make you float." He adds. Together, they stand above her, "Listen, in case you don't make it back… I would really like to te- tell you how much I appreciate what you have done for me."

Katniss already drowsy says, "… What's that?"

"You don't know how much you lose in a place like that… the hospital where I've been. You lose being trusted and it's strange how important that is once it's gone."

* * *

Peeta stands worried for the woman who has just put her life in his father's hands. He looks to the monitor to see images of her face and body. Walter comes up behind him to look. He turns to see Rue and gazes at her curiously. "If you want to watch, you can come closer- who are you again- do you work here?" She sighs and shakes her head.

"I'm Rue Stenburg, remember? Junior FBI Agent? Assistant to Agent Everdeen?"

"Uh, no I don't remember, but hi. I'm Walter, uh…" And he's forgotten his own last name…

Peeta frowns and pinches the bridge of his nose. "Mellark, your name is Walter Mellark."

"Ah, yes, Mellark. Thank you."

"Don't mention it," Peeta sighs.

"See, this is _her_ brain rhythm." He point to one generator, showing Rue, "More important than people know regarding cerebral regional interaction. Critical- massively important." Then to the other. "And this is his. Over time, as the narcotics take effect, the probes will coax their rhythms into sync – and the electrical signals from both - that's what our brains are electrical routers - should be able to be interpreted by the other."

"See it's easy, like making taffy!" Peeta laughs with an eye roll.

Rue smiles. Walter hooks up a monitor between the two generators and gets two squiggled lines, red and green, that represent their sine waves going across the screen.

"These are both of their rhythms- when they're in sync…they should be in the same place. So to speak."

"…So…now what?" Asks Peeta.

"Now? Chicken salad."

"…what?"

Walter turns to Rue, "Would you be a doll? Chicken salad sandwich, no raisins? Wheat bread? Pickles?"

"Yeah, I'll call that in-" She replies awkwardly, she turns to Peeta, "-anything for you?"

He smirks at her. "An escape hatch?" She smiles and goes off to make the call.

Walter turns and whispers toward Peeta, "Now we wait." Peeta watches, pensive.

* * *

Katniss floats on her back, eyes closed waiting…

Gale lies still, looking worse for wear, on the brink of death…

Walter takes notes on their vitals while eating his sandwich…

Peeta walks around Gale, looking into his refrigerated containment unit, sneaking quick concerned glances at Katniss…

They're all waiting.

* * *

Then Katniss inhales sharply, Peeta's at the monitor in a split second, looking for any sign of danger. "What's happened?" He demands from his father.

"She's getting close. Only a bit longer. Yes!" He shouts out, happy. They look at the sine waves and see there still just a tad off.

Katniss stands in the middle of a junkyard, curiously looking around. "Hello?" She shouts out. "I think I'm here." Her surroundings jerk as the waves line up. "Gale?" She turns around and there he stands. She breathes in heavily with tears in her eyes.

"I was just thinking about you." She runs toward him and they kiss. When they break apart, her hand lingers on his face.

"You're okay, you're here." She cries and kisses him again. This time after they separate and she looks into his eyes, she recollects. "Gale, you were hurt." He looks confused.

"I don't remember."

"Think. The storage units. We were sent to investigate-"

"Yes- wait why are you here? I feel so cold."

"I need you to remember, please. You saw his face."

"…Why?"

"So- so I can save you." She smiles sadly.

She starts to see herself running toward a figure, through the snow and - the man turns around. She sees him! She sees what he looked like! Then she calls for herself. They continue to run until she hears the deafening explosion.

Peeta watches the monitor, first she is calm, then happy, and a split second later, she's convulsing in the water, jerking around. "Walter! She's having a seizure!" Walter gets the FOSPHENYTOIN injection while he and Rue run down to the platform and throw the doors open. He grabs her by the shoulders and lifts her out. "Rue hold down her arms." She does as told and Walter hand him the syringe. He injects it into her right arm and immediately, her eyes stop rolling back into her head and she stops moving. Then she wakes with a gasp, sobbing, "I saw him! ...Oh my god! I saw him! ...I was there!" She clings to Peeta's shirt and he wraps his arms around her, comforting her. A few minutes later, she passes out, exhausted.

* * *

_Federal Building_

Katniss sits at her computer, creating an image of the auburn haired man. Her grey eyes are red and have bags under them. A number of agents stand around her, perplexed.

"What do you mean, 'I saw him'?" Jo asks her.

"I told you not to ask me that." She hands the picture to the surrounding workers and says, "This is our suspect. Run him through all data bases." And soon the picture is everywhere.

"Have you slept? You look like crap!"

"I told you already, I was there." She looks into her friends brown eyes and silently pleas for her to understand, but she knows she sounds crazy. Probably looks it too.

Another agent shouts out, "No primary matches for criminal records."

"Cross check all states' driver's license files."

"On it." He calls.

Another guy walks up to her. "I know this guy. I've seen him before."

It takes him a moment. And then, as if he doesn't believe it himself, he hurries across the room, to the images and file of people on flight 627. He rips one off the wall and looks at it as he moves to Katniss and hands it to her. She visibly pales.

"Oh, my god… This is him." She shakes her head in disbelief.

"Kat…" Johanna looks at her with soft eyes. "He was on the plane maybe you just-"

"I saw him there Jo!" She looks sympathetic but dubious.

"I think you need some sleep." For a moment, Katniss doubts herself. Maybe she is crazy. She looks at her with tears. "Why don't you come with me back to the house? I'll have Blight make up the guest room."

"No, no, no, I saw him _there_."

"Hold on guys. Morgan Stenson of Steeltown, Pennsylvanina, 44, and had one sibling…" The printer comes to life and Katniss walks over to it. A different picture of what looks like the same man. "Richard Stenson."

"He had a twin." Mason shakes her head disbelievingly. "You were right, Brainless!" Johanna shouts.

"This cements the connection between the plane and the storage units." Katniss begins articulately.

"What _is_ the connection?" Mason asks.

"-That's right: So, Richard Stenson sets up labs in the storage yard – we don't know what the hell he's working on, why or for whom- I need a work and education history!

"Pulling it up."

"Whatever he's doing, it's about as dangerous as it gets. His brother was obviously a trigger. But how? Was he in on it? Or was he set up?" She then has an epiphany, "-Jo, do you have medical history?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, tell me Morgan Stenson wasn't diabetic." She says.

"I can't, Type Two. How did you know?"

"There was an insulin pen found in the isle of that plane. So theoretically, let's say Richard Stenson spiked his brother's syringe. Dr. Mellark mentioned that he'd worked on self-eradicating airborne toxins – designed not to leave any trace once the targets have been infected."

"With what?"

"Well we need to ask Stenson that, don't we? Where's his file?"

"Hot off the press." Mason winks.

Katniss reads it and her eyes go wide. "Mason, look at this! Last employer."

Johanna takes it and mimics her expression. "Massive Dynamic…"

* * *

_Massive Dynamic_

Katniss walks fiercely down the hallway to Coin's office. She slaps the file on her desk. "This is our suspect. I want everything you've got on him." She demands. Coin picks up the photo of the auburn haired man. She obviously recognizes Richard Stenson. "Do you want me to get a court order or do you want to talk?" She places her hands on the desk and leans forward menacingly.

Alma past her and gesture someone forward. She says to her assistant, "Bring in our files on Richard Stenson." Then she turns back to Katniss. "The man you're looking for was an employee here for two years in our weapons systems research lab. He was fired three months ago after he tried to leave the premises with certain classified materials. Our investigators concluded that damage to Massive Dynamic was minimal…but that Mr. Stenson may be part of The Pattern. Which would be consistent with your suspicions."

Katniss looks curiously at Coin for a moment. "…I'm sorry, you said part of the pattern - what pattern?"

Coin's eyes widen and she looks at the girl in front of her with a surprised expression. "I assumed you had clearances…"

"Any clearance you have I have."

"Apparently not." She scowls at Coin, "Although, I will tell you this much. We've reached a point where science and technology have advanced at an exponential rate for so long…that it is far beyond our ability to regulate and control them. You should know what you're getting into, Ms. Everdeen. I would say the same thing to my daughter. To my granddaughter. Be careful." Katniss is struck by the warning, but before she can ask more questions, Coin's assistant walk in and hands her the files. "Will that be all?"

"Yes, thank you for your co-operation." That's how Katniss leaves Massive Dynamic, with answers but many more questions...

* * *

_The Lab_

Walter, Rue, and Peeta sit on the couch in front of a small, outdated television. Sponge Bob is on the screen and Walter is thoroughly loving it. "This, " He gesture to the screen, "is a show for kids?"

Rue nods excitedly and says, "It's a huge hit."

Peeta sits with his head back staring at the ceiling, resenting the whole thing.

"It's surprisingly profound, for a narrative about a sponge." Walter comments, "Don't you think?" He asks Peeta.

Before he can respond, the phone rings. He crosses the lab and picks it up. "Crazy house." He mutters into the receiver.

"I just landed at Logan. I'm on my way to you- I think we found the suspect."

"You actually _found_ him?" He asks incredulously, "A guy you saw in your _dream_?"

She continues without bothering to answer the question. "I'm picking you both up- I'll need your father there to question him, get whatever information he needs so he can make the cure for Gale- and I'll need you there too, in case your father's…you know-"

"Say no more."

* * *

Peeta and Walter sit in the back seat of Katniss's car. Waiting there like dogs after being instructed to stay put. He sighs and continues to flip through the file on Stenson. Walter is looking particularly uncomfortable around all the police activity. "Hey, you alright?"

He shakes his head like a child. "Reminds me…" He trails off. "Nothing." Then it hits Peeta. The day he was arrested, the fire.

Katniss and the team break down the door and inspect the apartment. Each room is signified as empty by resounding 'clear's'. She huffs, frustrated and depressed when she notices it; the rug she's standing on has a break in the dust line. She quickly moves it aside and finds a trapdoor, leading down into the ground. She puts a finger to her lips, in case someone is in there, and opens it. The cellar is dark and damp, and no one's in there but, the storm window's been opened. Inside, looks identical to the storage units. Katniss gets overwhelmed with the memory and leaves to exit the building. As she opens the door to the outside's cold air, she hears an unintelligible shout and starts running.

* * *

Peeta sits in the car alone with Walter and bored. He looks outside, anxious, at the footprints imprinted in the snow. "Thank you, before. For putting out the fire." Walter breaks the silence.

"My pleasure," He mumbles absentmindedly.

"It's good to see you again." Peeta looks at him, not giving an inch. Then he sees, past Walter. Stenson emerges from a below-ground flight of stairs. Peeta recognizes his face. He quickly throws the car door open, and calls out, "The alley, he's in the alley!" The auburn haired man turns and sees him. Well, he can't just let him get away. He turns on Walter, "You stay right there! You hear me?!" Then he moves into a run.

"What- Can't I- Can I leave the car?"

"No! No, you stay there!" He calls back from the alley.

Moments later, Everdeen makes her way to the car to see Walter alone with the door wide open. "Where's Peeta?" She asks alarmed. Walter nods at the alley where she sees a flash of fabric and is off following in a second.

He's gaining, he could tell that much. The man makes a sharp right and then he knows exactly where he's headed. He goes left instead.

Katniss gets into the fork and goes right, after a grunt she heard. She sees him, Stenson. He is going up a ladder and she follows suit. He keeps running on a roof top until he has to jump onto the fire escape of the building next door. He lands with a wail, but continues limping away. She does the same, in a more trained manner. She's still on the ground when another figure comes from the adjoining direction and barrels into the suspect, crashing together to the ground. She recognizes the blonde that continually punches Stenson. She takes out her gun and points it in the auburn's face. "We've got some questions for you!" She shouts.

* * *

_Federal Interrogation_

Katniss paces angrily, stomping her feet and shouting useless threats. He wasn't talking. No, Richard Stenson decided to play the silent card. Peeta took things into his own hands. He silently treads his way into the room the man is being held. He walks forward and starts to talk. "The compound that infected Agent Hawthorne- its water soluble, right?" The suspect stays silent, "We might not know what it is… but we know what it does. So, if I wanted to, I could extract the contaminated fluids from his body, and that would allow me to slip it to you whenever I wanted to. In your food, cup of coffee… no one would even know how it happened. The only problem is," Peeta starts forward, in a more daunting position. "The woman that was just in here… that's her friend who's dying, so, I just don't have that kind of time." He yanks Richard's hand forward and slams his mug down, effectively breaking a few bones. "Tell me the chemicals, now!" He yells and waits a few moments before repeating the process.

Katniss bursts through the room, and tries to separate the two men. "Hey, stop! Stop, you can't do that!"

He corrects her, "_You_ can't do that." He says and turns his attention back to Stenson. "I want the names. I'll give you to 3…" He pauses, "One!" He says, not even giving him the other numbers to work with and slams the cup back down. The man cries out in pain.

* * *

_The Lab_

"The active toxin was a magnesium-based ethylene glycol-" Walter starts.

"No, I understand that, but you're not listening to me-" Peeta runs after him down the stairs.

"A magnesium ethylene glycol with an organophosphate trigger-" He ignores him.

"Dad, stop!" He stills and looks back at his son, stunned. Peeta ignores his choice of words, "His blood won't be able to absorb if fast enough before the side effects kill him!"

"So- so your saying we synthesize a calcium gluconate in a thiamine base?"

"Yes."

"We- we can't we need more of his blood and we have none."

Katniss pipes up from the doorway, "That's not true. All Agents are required to donate a pint of blood in case they're injured."

Walter gasps, "That's brilliant- good thinking!"

"It wasn't my idea." She says but he'd already stopped listening.

Peeta continues, "We create the antidote, dissolve it into Hawthorne's stored blood, then transfuse it intravenously so his body's not overwhelmed."

"Autologous transfusion. Yes!" Walter shouts. Then he speaks to Katniss "We'll need that blood-"

"I'm on it."

* * *

Katniss watches as the Mellarks start doing, _what they do_, using whatever tools and tricks of the trade are needed to build the device, create the compound or jerry-rig the machinery-

In this case they're formulating the antidote for Gale.

Walter carefully measures multi-colored chemicals for Peeta to inject them into test tubes. Walter puts them in a centrifuge. Peeta hangs saline bags for Walter to inject the green compound into- the antidote.

Rue enters with a stainless-steel cooler and she opens it to reveal a bag of blood. Walter preps for the blood transfusion as Peeta looks for a suitable vein to put the needle into. His old blood leaves Gales body, and the new blood enters. Four faces wait patiently.

* * *

Katniss sits on a bench in the crowded hallway of Harvard. Students file through, unbeknownst to the heart ache she suffers. Abernathy appears next to her. He says, half-seriously. "I got you the lab." She can't help but smile a little.

"Yeah, you did. Thank you."

He nods, "How's it going downstairs?"

"Mellark says it'll be a while. But it's actually looking 'auspicious'. That was his word." He begins to stare at her. "…What?"

When he speaks, he's direct but warm and engaged, "You've done some solid work here; locating Mellark, getting him out, and finding a way to get him to work with you."

"His son found a way to get to him to work, not me. Brains run in the family."

"But you found them. You did it. You've done more in six days than we have in months."

"We? Who's we?"

"What happened on that plane might not be an isolated incident." Haymitch pulls out a tan folder with a classified sticker across the front. "Most of what I'm going to show you has not been made public." She looks at a photo of dozens of dead cattle, "Last April, in Houston, two- hundred and six cows were found dead. Autopsies reveal they were all missing lungs. No surgical marks. No signs of foul play." He pulls out more photos. All of men in hospital beds, he points to one. "In June, in a Paris hospital, a man who had been in a coma for six years began whispering one word, over and over. 'Dieu'."

"God? She asks.

He points to another one, "On the same day a comatose patient in Lisbon was heard speaking for the first time in a decade. 'Deus'." And the last, "Same day, Osaka: another comatose patient starting chanting…'Kamisama'." Katniss looks at him, confused. He takes out two more pictures, the first of a happy looking family, "In August a family from Toronto vanished while on a road trip to the United States. Then, two hours after they were last seen at a rest stop… " She looks at the last image, "…these charred remains of four people were found near Shanghai. The dental records and wedding ring matched those of the missing couple." He hands he the file and she looks through more depictions of unexplained phenomena, "Needless to say. Strange things are happening. You yourself have been witness. You know. It is a new, real, and continuing phenomenon: in the past nine months there have been three-dozen authenticated incidents like these 'anomalies'."

"There are no explanations? …Suspects? Claims of responsibility?"

"An emergency session was called two months ago in Tokyo – the worlds' top scientific minds in research and technology. They met with us - heads of state, security agencies. They were asked to review the evidence. Draw conclusions, make suggestions… It was a room of very alarmed people. They named these events 'The Pattern'."

"…The Pattern…" Alma Coin had used those exact words, "Why are you telling me all of this?" She asks and looks up at him from the file.

"Since May I've been heading up a Homeland task force called Fringe Division. We've been investigating these abnormalities."

"That's why they assigned you to the Hamburg flight."

"I want you to work for me, as a lead investigator."

"I _have_ a job."

"This is a better job."

"I like my job. And the man I do it with. As you seemed to have deduced on your own."

"Another 2 cases have come up since Hamburg. When I tell you what they are-"

"I don't want to know. Don't tell me. Mr. Abernathy, I've been trained for a lot. For everything, it feels like. Battle. Hostage crisis. Terror campaigns – suicide bombers, chemical attacks… But what I've been seeing recently…I don't know why it should be any different. Why it should affect me anymore. But it does. I'm scared. And I just want to go back. To before." Her eyes well up with unshed tears.

"I don't think you can."

"I can." She sniffles, and tries to persuade herself, "I _can_." She stands up to leave but before she does, she turns back to him and smiles, "Not that I'm not flattered, because I am. I should've said thank you before… Thank you." He watches her walk off, and he knows he's lost a good one.

* * *

Gale's tan skin is almost fully opaque. Only a few veins stand out against the pigment of his skin. While he sits there, looking remarkably well, he suddenly inhales. Walt goes to give him oxygen and calls out to Peeta, "Hurry, he's waking up!"

"Katniss! Katniss! He's waking up!" He calls out the doorway.

Katniss bursts into the room, full of hope and anticipation, and rushes to Gale's side. He opens his eyes and she's there with tears blurring her vision. She begins talking, quietly and sweetly, "Gale, can you hear me, baby?" Peeta records _that_ unofficial term.

His voice is weak when he says, "I had a dream about you…"

For the first time, Peeta regards his father as something of a hero.

* * *

Not an hour later, Gale is being wheeled out of the lab and to the hospital to continue his treatment. He passes Peeta, who stands near the entrance. He's on the phone speaking in Arabic, "_I appreciate your patience, I should be back by Thursday night,_" He says into the phone. He walks past Walter, who stands in the middle of the room, keeping a close eye on Peeta, brooding. And Katniss approaches, grinning, grateful…

"You can work all sorts of miracles." She smiles.

"I was hoping you might…need me. For another go. Another…something, I don't know…"

"They might."

"But I'd need Peeta. I don't think I could do it without my son… And I suspect he wouldn't do it without you." He says. That catches her off-guard; the fact she understand the subtext so instantaneously, and might even (in her deepest recesses) share the feeling it implies, is something she can't handle yet.

"…What? What do you mean?"

"I'm not sure…" Walter grins. Then, the smile fades, "What is it we're talking about?"

"I was… just thanking you."

"No need." His voice then hushes to an almost silent tone, "I meant to ask you. If you've read my file…then you know the truth. About my son's…medical history…" He looks at her, at sees a muddled expression.

"What are you talking about Walter? It just had his birthday."

"Oh, never mind then…" He trails off. She looks at him curiously, but brushes it off as his misremembering. He goes and walks towards his son to say her thank you and good bye.

"Your job still waiting for you?"

"You bet it is. Guys as brilliantly stupid as I don't just grow on trees."

"Not in Baghdad they don't."

"No sir."

"Good luck with Big Eddie."

"Thanks." And there's a moment, a look between them- despite everything, he's actually come to like her. And she, him. "This whole, circus actually went better than I thought it would." And the look holds…

* * *

_Hospital_

Katniss looks on at Gale through a hospital room window, a doctor stand behind her, astounded with his recovery.

"His vitals are strong."

"How long until he gets out of here?"

"A week or so, the melanocytes in his skin need to regenerate. This man really owes you his life, doesn't he?"

"We owe each other." Katniss turns back at Gale but her gaze heads elsewhere. "What room is Stenson in?"

* * *

She approaches the room in the secure, FBI only access, wing of the hospital. He's sitting in bed, wrists strapped down to the bed. She enters giving him a cold dark stare.

"I told the truth. Didn't I? I gave you the names of the synthetics I used in the-"

She scowls at him with obvious hatred, "Don't worry, our immunity agreement holds, but there's a lot more we have to talk about- like why you killed your own brother, and who you were selling your work to."

"Who says I was selling it?" He asks, curious.

"Right now I only need one thing: you got help from someone in our office, didn't you? We have phone records. The calls made to your pre-paid cell. Who were they from?"

He sits back, fear in his eyes… "You've got it wrong: I wasn't working with anybody, I was being threatened. And if the calls came out of your office…I'm starting to wonder if you can really protect me."

"I'll remind you, the death penalty is only off the table with your _continued_ cooperation."

"I'm not lying. I can prove it. I recorded one of our conversations."

"And where is this… tape?" She asks uncertainly.

"I buried it."

* * *

_The Lab_

Walter sadly looks on as all of his equipment is being packed and shipped back out. The cow, too. He walks up to it and awkwardly pats its head. "Research suggests bovines are… gifted with advanced cognitive abilities, and never forget a face. I hope you'll remember mine. Good luck, Gene." He says as his parting words.

"Gene?" Peeta asks from behind him, having had watched the entire exchange. His expression is partly amused, party embarrassed, and partly pitying.

"Our genetic benefactress." To that, Peeta smiles slightly. There's an unspoken acknowledgement then of what comes next, and suddenly Walter grows quietly, painfully desperate. " Please, please don't take me back."

His son sighs, not wanting to do this, "Listen, um- Walter-"

"You called me Dad before."

"And you asked me to call you Mom."

"This experience, it's woken me up again. You can't put me back to sleep-"

"This was hardly my idea-"

"Whatever punishment you think I deserve, I can assure you I've already endured it-"

Peeta cuts him off with a loud, "Stop."

Quiet settles around the pair.

"…Please, son." Peeta hurts too from hearing his father's pitiful pleas, it's against every rational thought that he has, his heart bleeds for this man, and it's irritating and confusing, he doesn't want to connect…

"Maybe the truth is if you'd been a better father to me, I'd be a better son." He moves off, leaving, Walter standing alone and heart broken.

* * *

_Stenson's Apartment_

Katniss's paranoia got the best of her. She went back to the crime scene. She's on her knees, cutting up her hands on the dirt. She digs, and digs until she comes across a plastic bag. Inside is the microcassette.

* * *

Gale stands up, looking determined towards the door as he walks, painfully towards the door. He touches the cold metal of the handle and slowly creaks it open-

* * *

She sits in her car and pops the tape in. She waits in anticipation as she rewinds it and pushes play.

"Who is this?" Stenson's voice fills her car.

"We had a purchase agreement." Another person says. Katniss's heart begins beating rapidly.

"There have been other bidders. Today- the airplane- was just a demonstration."

"You've drawn unwarranted attention- something we can't afford to be connected with. I'll make this simple: you're not selling to anyone else. You do that and we will come after you- _I _will come after you." Her eyes fill with tears as the soft, oh so familiar voice continues.

"You're threatening me? Isn't that unwise after what I did to my own brother?"

"Believe me we'll be happy to treat you as family too!" She closes her eyes as the tears slip out onto her horrified face.

_Behind them, a black van pulls up and out comes Gale Hawthorne talking on the phone. "Believe me; we'll be happy to treat you as family too!" He says calm but harsh._

* * *

Gale, now back in his clothes, walk up to the guard of the wing where Stenson is being held. "I just need to ask him a few questions." He says, showing him his badge. He slowly walks over to his door, like a predator. The auburn haired man lays still, asleep as Gale walks over to him. He grabs a pillow and without hesitation, begins to smother the man. He has no way of defending himself with his hands tied down, he's destined for death. So, when he stops moving and Gale removes the pillow, he knows the deed is done.

* * *

Katniss rushes for her phone and immediately dials Mason. "Jo, I need two agents stationed outside Agent Hawthorne's door, _now_! Nobody gets in there until I get there! And make sure Stenson's safe."

Johanna runs to that wing of the hospital, flashes her badge, and entered to see Stenson's current state. "Oh, god, Kat he's dead! I need this place locked down immediately!" She shouts at the guard.

* * *

Katniss swerves around a corner at the entrance of the hospital. She jumps out the car, running to automatic doors. Then she sees him. He is behind the wheel of a black SUV, their eyes widen at the same time and she darts back to her car.

She is already chasing him when she calls over her radio, "This is Everdeen, Agent ID 52776-in pursuit of black SUV, license number 5AD672B- heading south on Fenway, need immediate assist-"He quickly pulls on the freeway, trying his best to escape. She catches up to him and they begin to ride parallel. Gale swerves into Katniss, trying to run her off the road, but he himself drives right into some crash drums. Her eyes trail up to her rearview mirror, seeing the wreckage. She jumps out of the car, and runs like hell toward Gale's limp gasping body. She, despite learning of his betrayal, holds him and cries.

Then he says his final words, "Ask yourself… why… Abernathy sent you… to the storage facility… why _you_?" She looks at him befuddled. What did he mean by these words, did he expect her to believe him, or trust him?

"Gale… tell me… who are you working for?" He coughs up more blood but manages a half smile before closing his eyes. "No! No, you _tell_ me, Hawthorne!"

His chest stops rising, however slightly it was before and he dies. She's left sitting there, holding him and wondered… like his last words implied… why _she_ was stuck in the middle of this mess.

* * *

Katniss sit in the passenger seat of Johanna's standard issued car, eyes red and puffy, dried blood stains on her shirt. "I want to go to the lab…" She sighs.

"Kat, I promised I'd take you directly to the hospital."

'I don't want to go there," she whispers, pulling her legs onto the seat and hugging them.

"You need to get checked out-"

"I'm fine." She sighs and turns her head toward the window. And then she starts sobbing. "I- I'm fine, look at me!" Johanna looks at her and knows she can't say no.

She drives to Harvard, and Katniss stops crying but she can still see the paths all across her cheeks, glistening. When they park, she looks across the lot at Peeta and Walter, packing their things into another black government issued car. She moves toward them a shell of herself after everything she had just experienced, but she tries to appear normal in this moment. Strong. Better than okay. She jogs up to where Peeta stand and starts talking to get his attention, "So, uh…I was thinking. About everything. About what we did. And what we're going to do next." He turns to her and gapes at her disheveled appearance, " And I thought…given everything…that maybe not sticking together…maybe that's being a little selfish."

"What are you saying?" He asks trying to appear impassive to her obviously distressed state.

"I'm saying, even though the world, scary as it can be, is hell and I don't like it. If we can make a change, don't you think we should?"

Walter speak up from behind him, "Yes."

"No." Peeta ignores his father,

"I'm in." Walter persists.

"No you're not, because _I'm_ not." Then he turns to Katniss, "I can't, you know I can't."

"You're the only one who speaks Walter. What if- please - what if…we take care of it? What you…what you owe." Katniss is desperate and he can see that. He stares at her- a mix of suspicion and concern…

"..What happened?"

"I… just think it's the right thing to do." She starts to cry again. That's it; he knows he can't tell her no, _now_. He holds her, like her did before and even if he doesn't know why he's doing it, he comforts her.

"Of course, I will. I'll stay." He says.

She very quietly whispers her thanks and relaxes in his arms around her.

* * *

Suddenly, equipment is being moved back in. Walter could not be happier as he prances around his 'Golden Rectangle'. Rue helps unpack with Peeta. As he pulls out, yet another intimidating looking device he mutters, "I don't even want to know what this does." He fakes a shiver and Rue laughs at him.

"No you don't…" Walter remarks.

Peeta sees right through him. "You don't even _remember_ what this does, do you?" He asks incredulously.

"No I do not." Peeta smiles at his father's antics. The Walter sees something come through the door, "Gene!" He smiles. "Come this way, over here!" He jumps in glee.

* * *

Katniss stands in the corner of the lab, across from Abernathy, "I'm sorry about how it happened but I'm glad you changed your mind." He states.

She nods, but looks down sadly, "There's a lot we'll need on Monday. The doctors have a list of equipment- and of course they'll need a place to stay-"

"We have it all covered. But, it can't wait until Monday. I have something I need to show you now." He hands her a file.

"Mellark!" She calls. Both Walter and Peeta turn around obediently. "We've got a briefing," She smirks. They all shuffle into a side office in the lab. Walter and Peeta enter first but she holds back Haymitch, "Oh, and there's also the issue of the slight gambling debt…"

"No problem."

"By slight I mean _massive_."

"Solve this one, and it's done." She smiles and heads in.

* * *

_Massive Dynamic Hallway_

Alma Coin meets up with her assistant who is wheeling a body to the morgue. Her hand reaches out and she pulls back the sheet. There lies Gale's bloody corpse.

"How long has he been dead?"

"5 hours."

"Question him, then." She says and then saunters off.


	2. The Same Old Story

_**A/N:**_

_** So, I updated! Surprisingly. I only had one follow on this story so thanks to**_ _**isra22. Um, same stuff as the first chapter. This episode is titled The Same Old Story. Kind of punny. Um, Katniss is less emotional, I guess. Most of the dialogue is from Fringe. Tell me if I should continue this…**_

_** Alright, Bye!**_

_** I do NOT own The Hunger Games Trilogy or and thing that involves the show Fringe.**_

_**-RC**_

* * *

She lies casually, smoking a lit cigarette on a rumpled bed. She looks relaxed and content but when she opens her eyes, they lock on his troubled face. She decides to ask him a question, curious, "Who is she? Whoever you're thinking about, you're girlfriend or whatever?"

"I don't have a girlfriend." He says as he stands, crosses the room, and grabs a black bag. He looks at the girl sitting on the bed sadly, regretfully.

"What's in there?" She asks him happily, "It is a mushroom pizza? I could really go for one of those right now." She smiles to herself as her long brown hair falls over her face.

"Yeah, it's a mushroom pizza." He says offhandedly, partially closing the door to the bathroom.

"Awesome." She says, as she waits for him to get dressed, "You're not married, are you? Not that it's any of my business… You just never know about people." She sighs, looking up towards the ceiling, "My name isn't Amber by the way; do want to know what it is?"

"Yes, I do. Very much." He responds, taking out an orange vial from his bag, filling a syringe with its contents.

"Ready for this? Loraine. Loraine Daisy. All my sisters have flowers for middle names. My mom couldn't even spell Loraine right-" She stops mid-sentence, bending over with a scream. She clutches her middle, crying out in obvious pain. The man in the bathroom quickly gathers the things, his plan on hold for that moment. He looks at her widening stomach as tears pour down her cheeks. "Help me!" She yells, heart-wrenchingly. He quickly gathers her in his arms, and takes her to his car. A bystander asks the man if he needs assistance to the hospital but the man quickly speeds off muttering how he'd take her. Along the way, her screams get louder and her stomach larger. When they get to the ER he drops her off and leaves her there, listening to her shouts, guiltily.

Soon, her shrieks get the attention of the nurses inside the door. After she is situated on a gurney, being wheeled to get medical attention, a woman walks up to her, "I'm Doctor Steel, okay? Everything's going to be fine. Take a deep breath, alright? You're going to be fine, okay? You're going to be fine. Take a deep breath. Now, how many months are you?"

"Months?" Loraine breaths looking around panicked.

"Pregnant."

"Pregnant I-I'm not-" Her cries stop her as she begins thrashing around.

"We need to strap her in." Another doctor says to Steele. Moments after they do, her heart stops, the monitor flat-lining. Despite their best efforts, she cannot be revived and they shout to cut the child out. After, holding the baby, their eyes bug out of their head and some scream out.

* * *

Abernathy stands at the head of the table, looking around at the men and women who surround him, who gaze at him critically. "Thank you all for convening at this late hour. Forty-three minutes ago, we were alerted to an incident at the Wallace Bromley Medical Center. While the details are still coming in, it appears to be another anomaly whose mysteries and origins remains the sole purpose of this committee. I called you together tonight to introduce you to my new team, who will now be responsible for investigating all these events." Files are passed around the dark room, and faces twist inquiringly, "Hopefully, they will have more success than our last." He turns to the monitor that hangs high on the wall, "Walter Mellark, dubbed by his contemporaries as a successor to Albert Einstein, worked for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency from the late '70s..."

"Until he was institutionalized at St. Claire's for manslaughter." Alma Coin says to the entire group of high ranking officials.

"He was never committed of that crime." Haymitch says sharply.

"Yes, but you yourself also theorized that is some of Mellark's work could be the root to the phenomena."

"Given that he's been hugging a padded cell for 17 years… I think we can probably exclude him as a suspect, however, his knowledge makes him uniquely qualified to assist our efforts while he remains in the legal custody of his son."

"Ah, yes, Peeta Mellark, whose history of questionable business practices verge on fraud, yet you propose giving him access to information that, if made public, would cause mass panic."

Haymitch sighs, "There's nothing we could tell him that he can't learn from his father or deduce himself, with an IQ of 190."

"And what were you thinking when you recruited Katniss Everdeen? An FBI Agent who had an illicit affair with her partner, a man who turned out to be a traitor."

"I was thinking, someone who would go to such lengths to expose one she loves must be a trust worthy ally."

* * *

_Everdeen's Apartment_

She traces her braid, a comforting habit that she did while attempting to concentrate. Her hands hold old files, ones her and Gale had solved. Or didn't. Her paranoia is eating her alive, taking over her thoughts, bit by bit. Had they missed something? Had he hid something from her? It was all she thought about and lately it has been taking up her time to sleep. She is shaken from her absorbed mind by a ring.

"Hello?" She asks, her gray eyes still scanning the papers.

"Pick up the Mellarks and meet me in thirty minutes at the Bromley Medical Center." Abernathy states abruptly and immediately hangs up. She sighs and stares at the black screen of her phone.

* * *

_Peeta and Walter's Room_

Her hand hesitates a moment before knocking on the hotel door. After a short few moments, a drowsy Peeta answers, "You're kidding me, right?"

"Nope we got another one." He sighs and starts to turn, "Your phone was off the hook."

"That's 'cause I didn't want to be woken up." He says harshly. She looks down to hide her hurt. Ever since he'd agreed to stay, even if it was temporary, he'd gotten more irritated with her.

"You should go get your father. Apparently, we need to see something."

"And this something-"

"Can't wait."

He walks back inside, dressing and calling Walter. "Where are you? Walter, come on, we're- Oh, tell me you're not in the closet again! What the hell are you doing in there?"

"Where I've been for the past seventeen years is a mental hospital." Says a small voice from inside the door. Peeta looks ahead and nods absentmindedly.

"Yes, yes, we got you out. Remember?" He sighs while opening the door to get Walter out.

"There was a patient there. Carlos. He would sing 'row, row, row your boat' every night. Funny how difficult it is to sleep without that song."

Peeta grabs his arm and pulls him out to get decent, or as decent as Walter could. "That's nice, but we have to go, Walter."

* * *

_Bromley Parking Lot_

Katniss smiled at Haymitch's stern face as she got out of the car, "Sorry, we got here as fast as we could."

"27 minutes, I'd say that's pretty good timing." He says as Peeta gets out and stands beside her, "Is Dr. Mellark planning on getting out?"

"That's unclear at the moment. He's currently fiddling with his seat warmer." Peeta says sarcastically.

They all walkup to the car window and lean in, "I appreciate you coming out tonight." Haymitch says.

"I've never seen a feature like this before. It warms your ass. It's wonderful. Have you tried it?" He asks as he looks up with an inquisitive gleam in his eyes.

* * *

_Bromley Medical Center_

"Seventeen past midnight, a woman… pregnant to term, was found alone outside the hospital. She collapsed, suffering severe abdominal pain. She's a Jane Doe. Prints and D.N.A. are being run now. Should have her I.D.'d by sundown. At twelve twenty-four, less than two minutes after she was pronounced dead, Ms. Doe became a mother." Abernathy informed the group.

"And the baby survived?" Katniss asks.

"The newborn was convulsing, screaming in obvious pain. They placed it in a bassinet, and were in the process of transferring it to an intensive care when they realized what was happening. It was growing... before their eyes."

"Growing, like getting larger?"

"That's right." Peeta then stopped waling alongside Katniss and looked around.

"Walter, get back here!" He yelled back to the enamored 60 year old, who currently sat in front of a window, looking peculiarly at his reflection. When they caught back up to Katniss and Haymitch, Peeta combs his fingers through his hair.

"So, where's the baby now?" Everdeen asked, curiosity piqued as to why they were here.

"It remained alive for nearly half an hour, this way. Finally dying from natural causes."

"Natural causes?"

"They realized the child wasn't just growing, it was _aging_." They turned one more corner, to the nursery when they saw it. The skin was a reddish pink color, that of a newborn's but it definitely wasn't soft and smooth. Each wrinkle was defined, each crevice, like an old man's and his body was that of a full sized man. Each finger, each toe, accounted for. He lay on the floor, in a pool of liquids from his mother. His gray hair was an unruly, long gray mess, and the umbilical cord still hanging limply to the side, just having been cut.

"Wait, wait, wait… hold on a second. Its 4:00 A.M. so I'm a little foggy, but we're supposed to believe that grandpa here was born four hours ago?" Peeta asks.

"Were there any calls or tips? Did the security cameras see how the pregnant woman got here? Did she drive herself or was she dropped off?" Katniss asks, her eyebrows furrowed.

"We're checking those now. Doctor Mellark, any idea how something like this might happen?"

"I think you're expecting a bit much from my father, Mr. Abernathy." Peeta sighs.

Walter walks up behind him and crouches to study the body, "…Celermitosis. Disabling, reversing cell cycle inhibitors - activating them and turning CIP/KIP and INKA 4a/ARFs into catalysts… uh, ninety-two percent of Caucasian newborns have blue eyes." He turns to Peeta, "Yours were green." Then back to Katniss and Abernathy, "To understand what happened here, I'll need to run extensive tests, get these bodies to a lab. Therefore, of course, I'll need a lab immediately."

"You have a lab Walter. Harvard, basement, the _cow_."

"Gene. He calls it Gene." Peeta calls casually.

"Oh, yes! I forgot, this is great news!" Walter exclaims.

Peeta pinches the bridge of his nose, "Can we just go?"

* * *

_The Lab_

Peeta, Abernathy, and Katniss stand in her office, talking about the connections between the cases and how it relates to the man-baby. Rue interrupts the group with an urgent phone call. "I got Bromley on the phone. The hospital got a call from a guest at the Scarlet Red Motel, checking to see if the pregnant woman was doing okay."

"She was staying there?" Katniss inquires.

"Yes, with a Caucasian male - 20's, brown hair… but there's no description of him or the car he was driving."

"Okay, call the motel, make sure they don't touch anything- in fact, tell them to not even enter."

"I already did, you're good to go. Room's locked and ready." Katniss smirks at her assistant.

"Awesome." She exits the small room, walking up to Dr. Mellark, who's in the process of examining the bodies. He doesn't even look up to acknowledge her presence. "Walter? I may need you to take samples from the motel room. I need you to come with me." She says calmly and cautiously.

He swiftly turns and starts to yell angrily, "Can't you see what I'm doing here?!"

"Whoa, whoa, Walter!" Peeta says harshly.

"Well, I can't do my job if some woman is buzzing in my ears!"

Peeta walk up to him and holds Walter's arm to ground him back into place. "Alright Walter, you can go back to your work." He turns back to a stunned Katniss, smiling easily as he says, "Come on, Everdeen. I can do this. My limited stint at M.I.T. did teach me some things." And just like that, they're good again.

* * *

_Scarlet Red Motel_

"Loraine Daisy Alcott." Katniss says as she inspects a wallet.

"_Loraine Daisy_…" Peeta cringes, "That's just sad." Katniss laughs.

"One 'r'." Peeta grins and stands to enter the bathroom.

"Hey. I think I actually got something to sample in here. It's some kind of orange gel." After she's silent for a moment, he apologizes, "I'm sorry about my father. He always was a little myopic." She stays quiet, so he exits to see her. "Everdeen?"

"Her things were left behind but not his…" She inspects the bed.

"Checking the thread count?" He asks, worried at her demeanor.

"Yeah… Look in the cabinet!"

"What- Why?"

"Just do it! There will be sheets in there." He does as he's told and sure enough…

"Okay, how did you do that?" She looks around, eyes wide and stomps out of the room, upset. "Whoa, Everdeen, car's over here. What's wrong?"

"That's what he would do. He'd go to motels ahead of time, to replace the sheets with leak-proof medical grade linen, so he wouldn't leave any blood evidence."

"Who? What are you talking about?"

"I know who was in there. The killer. It was a case that Gale and I worked. Serial murders in New Jersey and New York, and we never caught him."

"Don't be upset you didn't get the bastard on the first try."

"That's not it. I- I just feel like I've been asleep for the past year. Every case that Gale and I worked together, I have to go back and try and find whatever I missed. Whatever he kept from me." She breathes in deeply.

"Okay…" Peeta says to the frantic woman, "Then tell me, how did the killer do it?"

* * *

_On the Way Back from Scarlet Red _

Katniss scowls forward, hands on the steering wheel, eyes on the road. Peeta studies her, anxiously, awaiting her to speak. Her mouth stays shut. His whole body was turns toward her, not even attempting to hide his impatience. Finally, she starts, "When I joined the F.B.I., this was one of the cases Gale and I investigated together. Each time, he'd kill five young women within a few days. He's pick them up, take them to motels... and then he'd give them a muscle paralyzer. They'd be wide awake, but unable to move. He's make an incision here," She gestures toward her upper lip, "along their gums. And then he'd pull their mouths open up to their eyes."

"Aright, that's enough information."

"He'd go through their nasal cavity and remove a piece of their brain."

"And all of this connects to magic old man baby and the pregnant woman... how?"

"I don't know, but the muscle paralyzer he used… it was bright orange. So if that's our sample, then I'm telling you, this is our guy. Which means - he's gonna kill again."

* * *

The man walks into the dance club, smiling freely like any other person, scanning the crowd looking for his next victim. There she is, blonde, beautiful, but this wouldn't be like the last one… She walks up to him and places her hand on his arm, "I'm Stacy." She coos.

* * *

_Federal Building _

Agent Johanna Mason stands tall at the head of a briefing table, her short spikey hair in a high pony tail, "Memorial services for Agent Hawthorne are being planned for late in the week. I know everybody's heard a lot of things surrounding the circumstances of his death, but I just want to be clear – Gale Hawthorne was one of us… and we will pay him the respect of considering him innocent until the inquiry can establish the full facts of the matter." She turns and sees a dark head of hair out the window, "Now, as far as any contacts, our official word right now is no comment. Dismissed." A flustered Agent Everdeen trudges into the room as soon as the rest depart. "Kat, what are you doing here?"

"I left you a message." She states simply, ignoring her friend's gaze.

"Yeah, I know. I got it. You want to open up a twelve year old serial case. The Brain Surgeon."

"I don't think he retired."

"How long is Abernathy going to have you on special assignment? What the hell are you working on anyway?" Jo leans her hands on the table.

"You knew, didn't you? About me and Gale." Katniss starts to pace the length of the room.

"I'd like to think I have some powers of deduction."

"I took advantage of our friendship. You kept quiet, even though you didn't approve."

"I hadn't seen you that happy in a long time. Look, Katniss, you have nothing to prove."

"Yeah, I do. I have to live with the fact that I didn't see him for who he really was. I have to live with the feeling that whatever awful things he did, I could have stopped them." Her face contorts.

"Kat, you can't think like that…"

"I just want to take a shower from the inside out."

"I'll get you the files." Katniss nods her head and attempts to compose herself.

* * *

They stand in an empty, dark, dank, warehouse. "So, I started working there a couple weeks ago. It's a lot better than the one in Providence. That place is a total dive." The blonde smirks and turns to the brunette man. "Most guys bring me to a hotel. Wow, heh. Look at this place."

"Those windows have a really great view of the bridge."

"I don't care about the bridge. What do you like?"

"I like the bridge. Go check it out." She nods and turns to the window behind her. The man prepares the syringe, filled with the orange gel. He walks up to her, kisses her, and injects the fluid into her neck. She screams out as she loses feeling in her body.

* * *

_The Lab_

Peeta slowly opens the door the lab. It appears empty. "Hello?" He calls.

"Over here!" Walter calls from the cow pen. Peeta walk over to see his father milking the cow.

"What are you doing?"

"Two thing at once. I'm waiting for you and doing her a favor."

"You were supposed to be doing extensive testing… eighty year-old 'man- baby'... remember that?"

"Done. Test is complete. You underestimate me. Which I suppose I deserve. But... wonderful news all around. D.N.A. results confirm my suspicions that the woman was impregnated by a man who is the result of experiments identical to those conducted by me in this very lab around 30 years ago."

"So you know how this happened?"

"No. No idea. The specifics elude me completely."

"So then what's this wonderful news?"

"Because I remembered something else. I remembered where I parked my car."

"You remember where you parked your car 17 years ago?"

* * *

They stand in front of a giant garage door. Walter walks over to the lock and enters the code. "3-1-4-1-5-9- Done! Ha!"

"Pi to six digits." Peeta mutters as he follows his father inside the dismal looking garage.

"I can't believe it's still here!" Walter laughs gleefully.

Peeta sees an old, dusty, Vista Cruiser Station Wagon, "This is your car?" He laughs, shaking his head. "Of course it is. So what, you got cars stuffed with papers all over town?"

"Not just cars, you've no idea where I've hidden things!" They open the car and begin rearranging items, moving the majority to the back. Peeta holds up a hand preserved in a jar, "Friend of yours?" He jokes.

"Oh... I certainly hope not. Come on, boy, we need to get these file boxes back to the lab." They twist the key to find it doesn't grumble alive. Walter sighs, saddened before he sees Peeta lifting up the hood of the yellowed car. "What are you doing?"

"You may be able to reanimate dead guinea pigs or... whatever, but I can bring anything mechanical back from the dead." He smirks.

* * *

_The Lab_

Walter moves boxes and boxes of files to the back room. When Rue comes back in, he notices her and says, "Oh, hello. I'm Dr. Walter Mellark."

"I know…" She sighs and introduces herself, "I'm Rue Stenburg, remember?"

"No…"

Peeta turns to her and laughs, "Third time's the charm, right?" Then he goes back to the files, "Now, Walter, it'd probably be easier if we knew what it is you're looking for." Katniss walks in at that moment and she looks at the scattered papers apprehensively.

"My research. Sella Turcica - Diaphragma Sellae - the dural folds of the Pituitary Fossa in which the pituitary gland sits, situated in the sphenoid bone." Walter replies to his son.

"Wait! Did you just say pituitary gland?!" Everdeen shouts from the door.

"Did I?" Walter asks Peeta.

"Well, that's how he killed. He'd perform surgery on his victims, remove the pituitary gland before he overdosed them with anesthesia."

"So, we look for anything with pituitary gland in it?"

"I still don't get it. What's the connection to what happened at the hospital?" Rue asks.

Walter speaks up, his mutters increasing in volume, "Advanced, rapid aging, like the disease called Progeria, can be induced artificially by manipulating the pituitary gland. 'P'- pituitary. 'P','P','_P'_."

Peeta decodes his father rambling, "Basically, all the hormones in the human body that control growth, which is aging really, are in the brain. And the pituitary gland is the boss."

"'P' Okay. Pinoche, pinto. Penny-oh. Ah, yes…" Walter continues. Everyone, even his son, looks confused.

"Do you mean Progeria?" Katniss asks.

"No, no, no… _Penny_." Walter plops to the floor and shuffles through papers until he exclaims, "Ah, ha!" And then hands a file to Peeta.

"Doctor Penrose?"

"Yes, Penrose. But, why…?" Walter trails off, searching his mind for the answer.

"Let me take a look." Katniss says.

"Penrose! I remember him now. A former colleague of mine. Although he suffered from severe pseudo-folliculitis nuchae." Walter rambles.

"Razor burn." Peeta tells Katniss.

"He'll know! We ran experiments on rapid growth. Obviously, someone had made a breakthrough, and Penrose could possibly lead us to that person." Walter yells.

"Doctor Claus Penrose. He moved to the East Coast two years ago. He's a professor at Boston College." Rue states from the computer behind them.

* * *

"Agent Mason" Johanna says into the phone.

"Jo, it's me."

"Everdeen. What's up?"

"I need a cross check of recent unsolved homicides. See if any bodies have turned up with a missing pituitary gland."

"Oh, you say the sweetest things." She smirks.

"Only to you, Jo.

"I'll get somebody on it."

* * *

_Boston College _

A man sits at a desk in the corner of his classroom his graying hair falls in front of his face. Katniss and Peeta walk down the step in the center of the class. She calls down to the man, "Claus Penrose?"

He looks up, startled. "Yes…?"

"Agent Everdeen." She flashes her badge at him, "Can we ask you a few questions?" He nods and she moves toward him, placing photos of Alcott's child on his desk. "This is a picture of a child only hours after it was born." She states.

"Where is the mother?"

"She died during childbirth. When she was admitted, she claimed she wasn't even pregnant. You worked with Doctor Mellark[, manipulating growth hormones at the end of the Vietnam War, yes?" He nods again, gazing at the photo.

"Yes, so what is it I can do for you?"

"In the years since, have you shared your research with anyone?"

"I must tell you, our work was-"

"Highly theoretical?" Peeta interrupts.

"Yes. But… I was going to say that… more than anything, it was wrong. I resigned from the employ of the United States Government after only one year. When I refused to continue, I was harassed. Threatened... with deportation. It...didn't feel like the America I remembered - from when I was a boy. Which is why... as sorry as I was to hear about Doctor Mellark's incarceration, I believe it was the best thing that could ever happen to humanity. No one in power should ever learn what he knows. Uh... forgive me for sounding uncooperative Agent Dunham, but... my work to which you are referring ended years ago. Since then, I've done all I can to forget it."

* * *

"So, what do you think?" Katniss asks Peeta as they get into her car.

"I think, you know what I think."

"Well, he meant what he said." She states as she backs out onto the road.

"Yes, but he's not telling us everything." Their conversation is cut off by the ring of her cell.

"Everdeen."

"Dudbury Police has a blonde female victim. Surgical incision along her upper gum line. The central endocrine gland has been removed… This count?" Mason asks her.

"Can you get the body brought to the lab?"

"Will do." And they hang up.

* * *

_The Lab_

Katniss enters with Peeta tailing behind her. "Rue called. She said you have news."

Walter stands over a young blonde girl, he chest cavity cut open. "Ah, yes. You're right. The pituitary gland has indeed been removed - and I may be able to posit a hypothesis as to why. Years ago, when I worked with the Defense Department, we were tasked with a program designed to cultivate soldiers."

"Cultivate?"

"Quite literally. Grow them. It was highly theoretical, of course. Female eggs were to be fertilized in a lab and given a cocktail of growth hormones. If perfected, a baby was born and within three years aged to the equivalent of a 21-year-old male. A soldier in prime condition."

"You're telling me you developed a way to grow soldiers - people." Peeta asks skeptically.

"Theoretically. The only problem was how to slow the aging process once the subject had reached the desired physical age. Once started, we couldn't turn the aging off."

"So you think now what? That the killer somehow continued your work?" Katniss questions.

"Not exactly. But I believe that someone has made a breakthrough, that the killer is the product. The test tube human afflicted with rapid aging. To slow the process, he must extract the hormones from the pituitary glands of his victims to treat himself, to stay young."

"Then the pregnant woman at the hospital-"

"She was an accident. And the killer's condition was passed on to the baby." Peeta blurts.

"Even condoms are not 100% effective. You two should be aware of this." Peeta closes his eyes and shakes his head. "That night, he was going to kill her, but first they fornicated. Had intercourse… sex."

"Okay, we got it." His son interrupts.

"She became pregnant, um, but the pregnancy became horribly accelerated."

"So someone must have heard her scream. And he couldn't go through with his plan. He couldn't kill her. Which is why he didn't kill this girl at a motel, because he was scared. And if his M.O.'s changed, then...we have nothing. We have to go back and start again from the beginning." Katniss sighs, unsatisfied.

"Everdeen, this is okay. We're making progress-" Peeta tries to console her.

"Why don't you tell _her_ that everything's going to be okay?" Katniss yells at him, gesturing towards the girl, and storms away.

"I thought you had a way with women." Walter tells Peeta as they stares after her.

* * *

Penrose storms into the warehouse, "Christopher!" He calls and the young man comes into his view. "The FBI came to see me today, I know what happened, we need to be more careful."

"I know."

"How's the pain?"

"Getting worse."

"Yes, well, we're almost there. You just need to get one more, and you'll be okay again." Claus hugs his son close.

* * *

"Yes. Yes. Yes!" Walter shouts out loud.

"Something on your mind?" His son asks sarcastically.

"Please. The term 'on your mind' vexes me with its depictive inaccuracy."

"Aw, stop. Would you just talk like a person? What are you thinking?"

"Jules Verne."

"'20,000 Leagues Under The Sea' Jules Verne?"

"Yes. Although I was referring to his lesser-known masterwork, the Kip Brothers, in which he posited that the last image seen in life, right at the moment of death, is permanently imprinted on the retina of the eye."

"Also a work of fiction. Which is a small but critical distinction."

"When was it you lost your imagination, son?"

"All right, do you want to play? Let's play. The only way that we can see what she saw, even in theory, is if we could recover the electric impulses that were traveling along her optic nerve… which we can't."

"Ah, we're in luck. This woman was given a muscle relaxant. The drug would have frozen her neural pathways at the moment of death and the last images she saw with it."

"Okay, assuming we're actually having this conversation, we would still need a... Well, I don't know. We still need something that could translate what she saw—"

"Something that could translate from her eyes to a monitor. A TV screen."

* * *

Peeta runs outside and catches up to Katniss. "Hey, Everdeen." He states as he plops down beside her on a bench.

"I'm sorry about that. I don't usually..." She stares straight ahead, groaning. He watches her warm breaths showing up against the cold air.

"What?"

"Lose control." Peeta smirks.

"To tell you the truth, it was kind of a relief. You've been so together with everything that's going on; I was starting to develop an inferiority complex. Knowing that Walter's work is responsible for all those murders... I just want you to know that you're not alone here." She looks at him, vulnerable, sad eyes glistening, "Listen... I can't believe that I'm about to propose this, but I- I think... We've actually figured out a way to track down that psycho."

"How?"

"Well, we need a piece of equipment. It's, uh, laser optic hardware. Very crazy and very, very hard to find. But as it turns out, only one company has the patent."

"Let me guess…" She laughs as he nods.

* * *

_Massive Dynamic_

Danielle, Coin's assistant startles Everdeen from her daydream, "She'll see you now." She thanks the young girl and follows her into the hi-tech office.

"I hope the ride was comfortable. I'm not a big fan of airplanes myself. Despite the obvious intellectual understanding of their safety, my hands still get sweaty on takeoff." Alma says to the agent.

"Thank you again for your cooperation, we're very-"

Coin interrupts, "No need to thank me. You know, I've been thinking of you - meaning to thank you for being a woman of your word and keeping Massive Dynamic out of the press. I also wanted to say... you have my sincere condolences on the loss of Agent Hawthorne."

"What do you know about Agent Hawthorne?"

"I know that he was your partner. I've lost people close to me. I know how hard that can be. Not to mention the rumor about what he was involved with. And, of course, the joy of being a female in a traditionally male line of work. No doubt some of your male colleagues are assuming that you two were intimate." The woman in front of Katniss smirks, then, the subordinate comes back in, "Ah, the electronic pulse camera. Travel safely, Agent Everdeen."

* * *

_The Lab_

Walter stands crouched over the body, carefully removing the eye from its socket. "Are we ready? Dear, the lights." He tells Rue. She just rolls her eyes at the pet name, "Goggles, all of you. Do not look directly into the light."

"Are we going to be able to see her last image?" Rue asks.

"Faith. Never a bad thing to have." Walter says as they all direct their attention to the monitor. Bright flashes pulse as the screen begins to resemble shapes.

"This is taking too long. If he's already picked up another-" Peeta says, disturbing the silence.

"Impatient! You always were."

"As if you ever knew me well enough to make a statement like that."

"Huh! You're a smart boy. But there is much you don't know." Then they wait a bit longer, growing more uneasy with each pulse.

"Did you see that?" Katniss asks as improved images appear on the large screen.

"What is that?" Peeta wonders aloud, seeing a 'U' shaped structure,

"Wait, wait. What was that? Can you focus?" Katniss rambles.

"It's not a slide projector." Walter grumbles.

"And I wondered where Peeta got his sense of humor." Rue mumbles.

"Hey what's that supposed to-" Peeta starts.

"Wait... Rue, can you flip it over?" Katniss hurriedly requests, cutting in.

"Yes."

"That's a bridge." Peeta states, his previous question forgotten.

"I know that bridge. I used to live in Denton. That's, um, that's Sargent bridge. That's in Stoughton." Rue announces.

"What's in Stoughton?"

"The warehouse district. This would be one of the last images she saw?" Katniss asks.

"In theory, yes."

"If you get anything more specific, call me!" Everdeen yells back to them.

"You got it."

"It worked, Peeta! See that? It worked!" Walter shouts at the pair rushing off.

* * *

_Stoughton_

"So Lessing... Borrow... Belmont." Katniss mumbles.

"Hold on - did you say Borrow? Did we pass Borrow already?"

"There." She points past Peeta and pulls over, "Stay here. In the car."

"Not a chance Everdeen." He says and they get out. She complains unhappily but submits anyway.

They run into the building, Katniss with her gun out and Peeta plodding behind. They hear a shout and footsteps as they come to an operating table. A petite girl lies unconscious, dosed with anesthesia. Penrose stands above her, "FBI, put your hands up!" She shouts and he complies.

Peeta rushes to the girl's side. "She's still alive!"

"Is there anyone else here?" She shouts at the doctor. Then she hears a noise, "You have your phone?" She asks Peeta.

"Yeah." He says and she give him hear spare pistol. He raises his eyebrows and points it toward Claus Penrose.

"Dial 1-7-2-2-4. Ask for Johanna Mason. Tell her we need field assist. Tell her to ping the GPS for the location. Safety's on the right. Do not let him move." She says as she runs after the fleeing suspect.

Penrose pulls a stunt and overdoses the victim. Peeta shoots toward him as the girl's heart stops. He rushes to her side letting the doctor run free.

Rue answers the phone, "Hello?" He explains the situation and she passes the phone to Walter. "It's Peeta."

"Just making popcorn."

"Walter, I'm with a woman in her mid-20s. She is going into cardiac arrest due to an overdose of anesthesia. Her heart just stopped."

"Do you have any cocaine?"

"Cocaine? No, I don't have any cocaine."

"Oh, then too bad. You'll have to shock her heart."

"Yeah, I know that. Unfortunately, I don't have a defibrillator!"

"Make one then." He does, finding a loose wire and charging it down.

"You still there?" He asks.

"Mm."

"What is the optimum voltage for cardiac resuscitation?"

"Try 200 volts."

"All right, here it goes." He shocks her chest, "It's not working."

"Well, you'll have to crank it, won't you?"

He tries it again and the girl gasps. "Hey! Hey, it worked."

"Good work, son. Good work."

He hangs up and turns to the now conscious girl, "Hey. You're gonna be okay."

* * *

"FBI!" The 'young' Penrose collapses and Everdeen walks up the man. He ages before her eyes as he says his final words, coughing and spluttering, "He - he should have let me die - a long time ago. I'm not... I... I was an experiment. Someone... someone paid him. The man I called my father. He should have let me die. That was his mistake. But he was blinded... Because he loved me. He loved me. He..." And the man dies.

* * *

_Massive Dynamic_

"Thank you again for your help." Katniss tells Alma Coin, returning the camera.

"That's what I'm here for. I hope it served you well. I'd ask you what you wanted the camera for, but I respect your confidentiality."

"Well, we're grateful for your help."

"Seems you're settling well into your new position."

"Excuse me?"

"I don't think a woman of your talents should be in public service."

"Oh? And where should I be?" Katniss asks stunned.

"Here, at Massive Dynamic."

"You're offering me a job?"

"Haymitch ABernathy is a good man, and his record speaks for itself. Well, I'm sure you got into law enforcement because you wanted to make a difference. So consider this - Massive Dynamic is one of the ten largest economic entities in the world. Our weapons technologies shape the Defense Department's strategies. Our investments sway the markets and make or break presidential elections. Overseas, we have responsibilities traditionally sacred to the state. The right to direct private armies, to manage global affairs into stable equilibrium."

"You're serious?"

"Yes, I am. Not to mention, I believe a position here would speed your effort to find answers."

"You're referring to 'The Pattern'?"

"Among other things…"

* * *

_Federal Building_

Abernathy sits at his desk as Katniss stands attentive, "Penrose took a hit. Forensics tracked a two-mile spatter trail leading from the warehouse out to route one. Local P.D.'s on the lookout, and I've ordered checkpoints along the Interstate, but nothing so far. He's still out there." His voice lowers, "Listen... every aspect of these investigations is strictly classified. All of it. You understand that?"

"Of course." She says.

"Certain private individuals have been granted clearance regarding 'The Pattern' – including Alma Coin. But that clearance is limited."

"I understand. Sure, but, uh... I'm not clear on what you're getting at."

"When you were with her, did she share anything with you? Did she mention 'The Pattern'? Did she comment or ask you anything about the details of your investigation?"

"Yeah, she did. She said you were a good man."

"And that was it?"

"She offered me a job."

"And what did you say to that?"

"I told her you were going to give me a raise." He grins as she stands and leaves.

* * *

_Mellark's Hotel_

Peeta lies on the couch, exhausted but wide awake due to…

" …0… 1… 1… 2… 3. …8… 13… 21 … 34… 55…" Walter says out loud.

"Hey Walter!" He says, blinking slowly, and rubbing his face.

"You're awake, Peeta. Me too. I was trying to lull myself to sleep." He laughs.

"Yeah, I'm… I'm aware of that. I can hear you. You think you could do that in your head?" He asks, calmly.

"Wasn't I? I thought I was. Sorry."

"That's okay. Just try and keep it down, all right?"

"1... 2... 33... 3... 77... 2... 21. 6... 110." Walter continues.

"Row, row, row your boat gently down the stream merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily…" Peeta begins to sing.

"Son? Is that you?" Walter asks nervously.

"Yes, Walter, it's me. …stop talking and close your eyes, okay? Row, row, row your boat gently down the stream merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily… life is but a dream…"


	3. The Ghost Network

_**A/N: **_

_**Hey guys! Still not a lot of traffic on this story. Um, tell me your thoughts. This builds more upon the story than anything else. Not a lot of Everlark. **_

_**Since this is based off a TV show, their relationship with progress quite slowly.**_

_**Please, please read, follow, favorite, and review.**_

_**I will be updating my other stories soon.**_

_**Disclaimer: I do NOT own The Hunger Games Trilogy or and thing that involves the show Fringe.**_

_**-RC**_

* * *

He runs into the confessional, straight through the rows of benches, usually used during a sermon. He looks scraggly, unkempt, and panicked. "Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. It's been three months since I last confessed." He chants hurriedly. He rubs his sweaty palms against his worn jeans, anxious.

"Go, on son." The priest says through the concealing panel.

"Do- do you believe God can speak to you, Father?" He stutters nervously.

"Of course I do. The Lord speaks to all those who are willing to listen."

"I- I'm a good man, Father. At least I try to be. I- I don't know why he chose me but I see thing things. It- it's happening again." The man clutches his head, willing the images to leave_. He sees a man in a clean, crisp suit board a bus. He carries a briefcase. He inspects the passengers._ "It's happening again and I'm scared!"

"Scared of what?" Father Kent asks, concerned for the young man.

"Of what's going to happen on the bus." _The man in the suit begins to open his case, put a mask on, and attacks. He can hear the echoes of their screams as the mist engulfs the entirety of the bus. The man picks up a backpack and walks free._ "I want it to stop! Please! I just want it to stop!" He shrieks as he flees the church. He priest scurries after him.

"Have you hurt someone?" He asks. With no reply he continues, watching the fleeting shadow of the man, "Roy! Roy, son I know it's you!" He shouts. When he looks down, there is a drawing lying on the floor. _The passengers are set in a charcoal drawing as they wail, suffocating as the gas solidifies around their figures._

* * *

Katniss stares at the attendees. She keeps a straight face as Hazelle Hawthorne is given a folded up flag to honor her dead son. Tears steam down the fragile woman's face, a woman she was quite fond of, still is, but is unable to bear being in her presence due to the dirty looks she throws her. She closes her eyes slowly, giving herself just a few moments to mourn alongside his mother. Most of the crowd disperses after he was laid into the ground but not Hazelle. Or Gale's three other siblings. They stare at their mother, her eyes swollen, panting, taking deep breaths to calm her racing heart. It reminded Katniss of how she had felt. Finding out he was a traitor. _He_. Partner. Lover. Friend.

Liar.

She turns away from the scene leaning against a tree. Then as if a switch has been flipped, all the sadness that had been accumulated since Gale Hawthorne's death dissipates, leaving a gaping hole which she fills with anger and frustration. She exhales loudly, rubbing her temples. She didn't get dressed up for her partner's funeral. Just her regular attire; black pants suit, white button down shirt, tennis shoes, and her signature braid. She was easily spotted by Ms. Johanna Mason, who came running up to her disheveled figure.

"I know Kat, just being here was hard, but you did the right thing. For his family."

"Yeah. The man betrays his country, turning over state secrets to God knows who. And here we are, pretending he's a hero." Her friend's gaze flickers surprise a moment due to Katniss's change in attitude, before saddening once again. She sighs.

"I know. Stop. Bureau's got one black eye as it is. The last thing we need right now is another espionage scandal. You made it through. It's over now." _If only she knew. _

"Did you see Gale's mother? She wouldn't stop looking at me."

"His mother? Hazelle."

"Yeah, she was blaming me for it; as if it is my fault he's dead."

"As far as Hazelle knows, her son died a hero serving his country."

"He used me, Jo; he told me he _loved_ me." Johanna looks at her friend, wide eyed a moment. "It was all a lie!" Katniss whispers roughly.

"I wasn't going to tell you this, but… he told me he loved me too." She says with a smirk, quickly diffusing the situation with a light laugh.

"Thank you." Katniss says quietly, just before her phone rings. "Everdeen." She answers.

* * *

Peeta sits across from his father at an oldy-styled café. He eyes him suspiciously as he mixes a white powder into his tea. "You brought your own sweetener?" He asks with a scoff.

"Don't be ridiculous. It's my medication." Walter replies as if it's the simplest thing in the world.

"You're not on any medication." Peeta says with a frown.

"Of course I am. I've been making it myself in the lab."

"I really wish you were joking. You've been self-medicating… with home-made drugs." He mutters out loud to himself.

"It's a simple concoction of dextromethorphan, clonazepam, and some fluoxetine."

"Those are psychotics, Walter. All of them." He groans.

"Of course they are. That's the point. I have been in a mental facility for the past seventeen years. It's put me quite out of balance." Walter says, but his son's attention is quickly diverted behind him to a man with a camera.

"Just stay here for a second, would you?" Peeta's gaze never leaves the man as he slips from the booth.

"What if I need to use the bathroom?" Walter whines. He quickly turns back towards his father and glares.

"Just hold it." Walter watches Peeta leave, until he hears a buzzing. He looks down at his son's phone curiously, picks it up, and answers.

Peeta walks up to the man and grabs his camera. "Hey, what are you doing?" He yells.

"You really thought I didn't see you all day?" Peeta asks with a shake of his head while scrolling through countless photos of himself. He takes out the memory disk.

"You were supposed to check in before you came home."

"You tell anyone I'm here and you'll be the first I come after." He growls and waltzes back to the booth.

Walter looks up happily and smiles. "It was moving, but I stopped it," He says with a gesture at the cell phone. "And also there was something very important. Oh, yes the pancakes I decided… blueberry."

"That's great, Walter, but did someone call me?"

"Yes, _that_ is what was important. Something about a bus."

* * *

The trio walks down the dim tunnel, illuminated orange with the artificial lights. Abernathy leads them, informing on the way. "The incident occurred at 8:14 A.M. - middle of rush hour. First responders were worried it was bioterrorism. They called in the C.D.C. - confirmed the attack isn't biological in nature. There's no Contagion."

"And you said there wasn't any good news." Peeta mockingly comments, just before reaching the bus. The sight stops him in his tracks. A dozen people stand inside, stuck in the brownish-orange substance. Their mouths are agape, open mid-scream as their bodies hold their position, shifting toward the exit.

"Oh, this is horrible- like mosquitos trapped in amber." Walter says with an under lying hint of curiosity.

"If this is an attack, why not just use something conventional, like plastic explosives? A pipe bomb?" Katniss asks Abernathy.

"Impact. Whoever did this wanted attention, I mean, look at _that_." Peeta motions toward the bus, eyes still wide.

"Or it's not an attack at all and it's something else entirely." Haymitch replies, gruff.

"Meaning what?" She asks.

"If I knew that, you wouldn't be here."

Walter begins to mutter things until saying loud and clear, "I imagine that the material was released in gaseous form before solidification. I need to study it back in my lab. Can I have some?"

"Yes. We'll also have to dig out their personal effects so we can ID them. Notify their next of kin." Katniss says.

* * *

Roy begins seeing things again. His sits in his white boring cubicle when suddenly, as if he has no control, begins to draw out the images in his head. He is only brought back to the world by the voice of a concerned coworker, "What is that Roy?" He looks down. The woman lies dead, looking beautiful and serene; all parts of her are flawless except her hands, slit open and oozing out blood.

"I- I don't know."

* * *

_The Lab_

Peeta leans against the counter, watching his father, "Any ideas as to what it is yet?"

"It's tricky. Very tricky." Walter studies the microscope slides, "All I've been able to discern is that it starts as a silicon-based aerosol, and it solidifies somehow. You could be of assistance to me. I would love to hear some Bach. Mass in A minor. Will you play it for me? I'm sure the young lady down there would get us a piano." He motions toward Rue.

"That young lady is an F.B.I. Agent , Walter. Her name is Rue, and this is the 100th time you have forgotten her name. So, no, I don't think I can get you a piano." She smiles at him.

His father clicks his tongue and shakes his head, "You always resisted your lessons too. Lack of commitment, son, was always your problem. Imagine that's why you still haven't chosen a profession."

"Oh, well, I suppose I should've followed in your footsteps. You work has obviously brought so much joy to the world." He snaps.

Walter's demeanor changes, "Who was he, Peeta?"

"I'm sorry?" He asks, confused.

"The man in the diner."

"It was nothing. He was harassing the waitress. I just told him to cut it out." He lies smoothly and turns away.

* * *

She stands, surrounded by various items, having been cut from the amber. She walks along them, studying the bodies. They lay motionless, blue faced. Asphyxiation. She looks upon them and sees a man. Well, what he's holding more exactly. "Excuse me?" She asks the forensic technician. "Can you extract this camera?"

The men and women go about their daily lives, normal on the tape. "If we're lucky, maybe he caught whoever did this-" She sees something, "Stop… go back. Can you close in on that woman?" She sits alone, long flowing brown hair, her attire isn't anything special, but she's holding a bag. A blue one, but it's not among those they recovered. Jo walks up behind her.

"What is it?" She asks.

"The backpack, it wasn't there before. I just saw this woman, and it wasn't on her."

"So someone took the bag from her? Got off the bus before the attack?"

"Who is she?" Katniss inquires from the technician. They call-up the woman's computer personnel file and hand it to Agent Everdeen, "Evelina Mendoza. She's a federal employee.

"What's her job?" Jo wonders aloud.

The brunette's jaw drops, "Oh, my God. She's D.E.A."

* * *

_Federal Building _

Katniss treads behind Haymitch and yells out to him, getting him to turn around. "The woman who died on the bus, whose backpack was stolen, she was a drug enforcement agent, working undercover. She had a handler, Grant Davidson. I want to call him in for questioning." He shrugs and continues along the hallway.

* * *

_Morgue _

He stands tall, outside the morgue. He looks at her sadly, "I apologize for not being more cooperative on the phone earlier. I had to ask my superiors for clearance to talk to you about Eve."

"Our condolences," Katniss says in her most sympathetic tone. "Based upon her records, she seemed like an exemplary agent."

"She was." He smiles.

"Agent Davidson, can you tell us what cases she was working on?"

"Uh, three months ago, she was tasked to infiltrate the east coast representatives of a Nicaraguan drug cartel. We'd been banging on them for over a year. Out of the blue, she called me. Said she wanted me to pull her out. She was scared. She heard members of the cartel discussing something about 'The Pattern'. I told her I never heard of it. And, uh, we set up a meet but she never showed." He looks down, shamefully, as if it was his responsibility.

"It appears whoever attacked the bus this morning was interested in one of her effects. Do you have any idea what she could've been carrying?" Her eyes bore into his, awaiting the answer. He looks behind her, lost in what seemed to be a happy memory. He comes back to Earth.

"No. I wish I could be of more help."

"You have been useful. Thank you. Now, I need to ask if you would be able to identify her body."

"That should be fine."

They walk down the corridor, to the room in which Eve's body is being held. Grant takes a sharp intake of breath when he saw her lying in the slab. Stitches run across her chest from her recent autopsy. His eyes become shiny.

"Have you spoken with her family?" Katniss inquires.

"Uh, there's a brother she doesn't talk to…" He looks longingly at the beautiful woman. She appears so peaceful in death, preserved. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize how hard this was going to be."

"You don't have to explain. I know what it's like to lose someone you've worked with closely."

_She truly does._

"I'd uh… I'd like to say good-bye to her alone." Katniss nods solemnly. Just before she leaves, she turns to see Grant pick up the lifeless fingers of his coworker and kisses her hand. Silent tears stream down his face as he cradles her hand with his own. Everdeen lowers her eyes and departs.

* * *

_The Lab_

She walks in, immediately noticing the redecoration. "Should I bother to ask?" She gestures to the piano, which is taking up a large amount of space. Rue laughs and strides up behind her.

"Music helps him process. It works too. As soon as Peeta started playing, Walter just kind of locked in. He was able to recreate the material from the crime scene."

They share a knowing smirk towards the scientist who sits calmly at the bench, running his finger over the keys.

"Hey!" The son calls to the Agent, running back in through the door.

"I hear you can play piano." She smiles slightly.

"He doesn't just play. He's good. You should hear him." Rue speaks up.

"No. Maybe another time." Peeta dismisses it.

"You'll be pleased to hear we figured it out. The material, the gas that was released on the bus, turned solid when it met the nitrogen in the atmosphere - instantly immobilizing and suffocating the passengers." Walter declares.

"So who would have the know-how to manufacture something like this?"

"I'll give you six guesses. And the first five don't count." Peeta grins.

Katniss mirrors his gaze, "Massive Dynamic."

Rue sits at the computer, surfing though the FBI database. "You two were right. Three chemical companies in the U.S. supply those compounds… all of them fully-owned subsidiaries of Massive Dynamic."

They share a smile until it's interrupted by her phone. "Jo, what's up?"

"We've got something. I think you want to see it."

* * *

_Roy's Apartment_

"Tip got called in from a priest over at St. Anne's. Says the guy that lives here mentioned a potential incident about the bus before it happened." They walk along the walls of the cluttered apartment. Others stand around them, looking for clues.

"So what do we know about him?"

"Name's Roy McComb. He's a high school graduate, no criminal record. Apparently he's been pushing papers over at an escrow company for the last couple of months. Got D.P.D. picking him up from there right now."

"That doesn't seem like the profile of a mass-murderer." She retorts.

"No. I didn't think so either." Jo begins to walk into another room. "But…"

"What?" She follows her partner to discover art of the horrific images she had been growing accustomed to lately, sculptures, drawings, paintings… all relating to 'The Pattern'.

"You're looking at depictions of dozens of attacks, accidents, disasters we've seen over the past year. And look, all of them are dated before the incidents took place."

She looks down at a little toy commercial flight with the numbers 627 scrawled on it, "Is that the flight from Hamburg?"

* * *

_Federal Building_

They all stare at the man; overweight, uncut, sweaty, nervous, jittery. "So this guy drew Flight 6-2-7, the 'Angel Suicides' in Baltimore and the 'Birmingham Bridge Collapse'. Clearly, the man is disturbed… but do you really think that he could be involved in all this?" Peeta asks skeptically.

"No. I don't. But that doesn't make me any less interested in the way he got his information. Several of those incidents have never been made public. And based on the evidence, every one of them was either drawn or constructed before the event depicted." Haymitch says.

"I'm going in." Johanna states with a sly twitch of her lips and waltzes away. The door to the interrogation room open and in pops Mason; clean, precise, and so unlike herself. "Hello Mr. McComb. I'm Special Agent Johanna Mason with the FBI. I'd like to ask you a few questions. Would that be okay?"

"Y-yes." He stutters, "And just Roy, please."

"Okay, Roy, well I'd like to start with this drawing of yours." She says softly. Out from a manila folder comes the black and white charcoal found in the church. He visibly stiffens.

* * *

_Coin's Office: Massive Dynamic_

Katniss stood in front of Alma Coin's desk, impatient, "Fourteen different chemicals compounds were used in the material responsible for the incident on the bus. Three of them, manufactured exclusively by your subsidiaries." She says swiftly.

The woman in front of her, with the pin straight gray hair, sat calmly, unaffected by the agent staring her down. She smiled slightly. "You've done your homework. Although, you may like to know, we supply them to a dozen labs around the world. It could have been stolen from any one of them."

Katniss scowls her eyes, but continues to smiles tightly. "I would like a list of those labs then." She huffs.

"Of course. Anything you need." Katniss stays in her spot, staring her down. "Will there be anything else?"

Everdeen quickly corrects her posture and sits down, the start of a conversation with different content, "When we first met, you said that science and technology had advanced to such as state that - your words - they were running out of control."

"That sounds about right."

"Well so far, all the science and technology that I've come across has been very tightly controlled by Massive Dynamic. Every case I investigate has a tie back to this company." She inspects Coin's face, awaiting the moment that what she was saying would click in the older woman's mind.

"Well, I think maybe you have it backwards. Massive Dynamic is... well, so massive that just about everything in the world of science and technology has a tie back to us. Of course, I could say something of the same to you, couldn't I? You've been investigating these cases for a very short while now. At least three of them have occurred right in your own backyard. I might suspect that you, yourself were somehow responsible." She smirks in a deadly manner, and then changes her expression to a happy one for her assistant who handed her the files, "Thank you." She directs her attention back to Katniss, "I hope it'll help you find whoever's behind these attacks." She says with a smile.

"_A__ttacks_?" She asks curiously.

"Oh, apparently Haymitch didn't tell you." Alma looks at her knowingly, "Yes, the technology was used once before in Prague, although there were fewer casualties. Then I suppose if you had access to the case files, you'd know that we'd already shared all the information we have with the Government." Katniss depart in a sour mood, but thanks her anyway.

* * *

_Federal Building_

"What about this one?" Mason probes, more sternly than before, "Is this one going to happen too?" Roy looks down at the pencil drawing he'd had on his person when they brought him in.

He begins to shake his head and rub his temples, "I- I don't know. Look, I know that this sounds crazy, in fact, I think I _am_ crazy. But I can be anywhere, at home or at work, and uh, then all of a sudden I get this, I don't know how to describe it... this... this _feeling_ and the only way that I can get it out, get rid of it is to try to draw what I see. Or to try to build it. Sometimes, that works too." He sighs.

Jo- no matter the circumstance, always able to keep a calm demeanor- Leans forward to catch McCombs eye, "How long has this been happening?"

"I think around like 9 months?" He begins to breathe deeply.

Abernathy stands in a circle with his team, "Nine months? That's roughly when we became aware of the pattern."

"Meaning what?" Peeta asks, serious for once.

Abernathy turns and replies, "I'm not entirely sure yet, but I can't say he's lying."

"He's not. I like to consider myself to be a fairly good poker player, which requires me to have the ability to read my opponents' tells, knowing he's bluffing. He's not bluffing. Regardless of what the actual explanation is, he sincerely believes that what he's saying is the truth." He nods along with the explanation Peeta gives.

"In that case, what do you suggest? How has he learned of these incidents?"

"I don't know."

Katniss walk in sullen, but immediately uplifted to see all the people she needed to speak to in the same room. "Hey!" She exclaims, "I was just talking to Jo, she told me-"

Walter interrupts her, "Occam's razor. A lot of things being equal, the simplest solution is best."

"And what's that?" Haymitch asks.

"The man's a psychic. Theoretically, it's very possible."

"You're saying Roy can read people's minds?" Katniss asks.

"I posit that Roy has no control over his abilities- that he's linked psychically with someone or less likely but still possible a small group of people responsible for these events. Equally possible, someone's who merely discussing them. Perhaps he's communicating with you Agent Abernathy."

"Forgive me, Dr. Mellark. I consider myself fairly open minded but I have a hard time believing that McComb is hearing someone else's thoughts." Abernathy states tersely.

"As do I. Which is why I'd like to prove it." He declares.

"And here we go." Peeta sighs, shaking his head.

"How is it you would do that?" Abernathy inquires.

"Am I required to keep him alive?" To this statement, Peeta laughs out loud.

"That would probably be best." Katniss replies.

* * *

"Can we talk a moment?" Katniss breezes through the hall, catching up to Abernathy.

"Go ahead."

"I spoke with Alma Coin, and she informed me that this isn't the first time the material has been used."

"I'd usually be skeptical of anything that came from Alma, but in this instance, she was correct."

"So, what? Now I don't even have clearance for background information on a case I'm investigating?" Katniss scoffs.

"Agent Everdeen, if I'm not always completely transparent with you there's a reason. This little task force that you and I call our day job now, it sometimes requires some... shall we say bureaucratic maneuvering to keep it alive and free from political meddling… which means… sometimes I don't tell you everything for your own protection."

She scowls but professionally returns with a quick statement, "With all due respect, chief, that's not good enough. If I'm to do my job _properly_, I need all the information."

* * *

_Hospital_

"What is it we're looking for?" Peeta asks Walter, who looks at the monitor screens in front of him.

"If my thesis is correct, if he is picking up the thoughts of another human being, he will leave a distinct signature." Peeta stares on at McComb, who was getting prepped to go into an MRI scan.

"And you think we'll be able to identify what those thoughts are…?"

"That's preposterous." Walter laughs, "But I may be able to intercept them." Roy enters the chamber, looking very nervous. "This is quite a magnificent machine! Do you mind if we view the axial images?" Sweat drenches McComb as they turn on the machine. His vitals begin to spike.

"He call out in distress, "What's happening?!" The veins beneath his skin begin to protrude and he cries out.

"Stop the machine, now!" Peeta orders and runs into the room." The patient sighs and sits up looking at his savior. "Are you alright?" he asks.

"Yeah, yeah. I think I'm okay. What did that?"

Walter begins to speak to himself, "Something- something in the blood. A magnetic compound of some kind, dormant... perhaps a parasite."

"What he saying? I don't understand."

"The machine is basically a gigantic magnet, and you've got metal in your blood. If we hadn't turned it off, it would've ripped your body apart." Peeta explains the best he can.

"It would have been quite a mess." Walter murmurs.

"Why would there be metal in his blood? That's not normal, right?" Rue asks behind them. They look at each other with raised eyebrows.

* * *

_The Lab_

"Everything from 1989, was it?" Rue asks softly, searching through the countless boxes that surround her tiny frame.

"Perhaps it was '79." Walter speaks. She sighs.

"That's very helpful, Walter." Peeta says with sarcasm lacing his voice.

Walter shuffles around the room for a bit until he comes across the file he'd been looking for with an 'Aha!'. "See? I was right. Bee and I worked on this very problem."

"Bee?" Rue asks.

"Oh, he didn't tell you? Beetee Wright, the richest man on Earth. Massive Dynamic. They used to share a lab." Peeta rolls his eyes.

"Loved cloves. Awful odor. We posited a spectrum of waves lying outside of the range of those already discovered. We hypothesized that these waves could be used to communicate information. The Government, of course, was extremely interested. It was a brilliant idea. A theory, but a good one. They wanted to use the network to send their most clandestine information."

"Because if no other government knew the system, they couldn't listen in." Peeta stated.

"Yes. And they called it the 'Ghost Network'. But they asked us to take it one step further, to develop a method where they could transmit directly from one person to another. I surmised that I could introduce an iridium-based, organometallic compound into the subject's brain."

"You've got to be kidding me." Peeta shakes his head in disbelief.

"Hmm? What is it?" Walter asks.

"Roy McComb was one of your test subjects, wasn't he?"

"Of course! That explains it!"

"Explains it? Yes, that explains why he almost died today. Because you injected something into his brain nearly 20 years ago!" Peeta growls, starling Walter.

He defend himself, "No, what I gave him was not nearly enough to cause that reaction. The compound must have multiplied in his bloodstream over time. Environment, perhaps diet."

"He was a sophomore volunteer for psych experiments. Did you ever even bother to explain to him what you were doing?"

"Well it wouldn't have been a very secret experiment if I had."

Katniss walk in at just the wrong time. "Hey guys! What's going on? How's Roy McComb?"

"Roy McComb will be fine. No thanks to my father's attempts to turn him into a human walkie-talkie." Peeta states angrily.

"Wait a second-" Walter interrupts.

"Don't even try to change the subject, Walter!"

"No, no… What you just said is on subject. The iridium-based compound that multiplied in his bloodstream has turned him into some kind of receiver."

"A receiver of what?" Katniss butts in.

"Transmissions. Someone else, it seems- and I'm somewhat jealous of this- has perfected our 'Ghost Network', and is using it to communicate. Our dear Roy is merely overhearing what they say."

Peeta sighs.

* * *

Walter Takes out a kaleidoscope, twisting it and looking inside. "You will note that the rotary movement gives the impression of a three-dimensional tunnel, when in fact it is not." Then, he stands before a picture, he smiles upon inspection, "Ah, it's an oldie but a goodie. As you observe this image, your brain perceives first a duck, then a rabbit, then a duck again - it always comes back to the duck. In truth, the image is neither. But it illustrates the brain's need to take random sensory input and construct it into a meaningful whole…"

"Great!" Peeta interrupts, still agitated.

"… despite…"

"Thank you! We get it!"

Katniss begins to address them in a small voice, "Um, I don't think I do get it."

"Well neither do I, I just want him to stop," Peeta groan, "I'm pretty sure it's just nonsense any way."

"I'll hit the lights," Rue stands.

"I suspect someone has continued my research. But they've taken the easy way out…. merely using the 'Ghost Network" as a secure telecommunications channel."

Katniss finally understands, "You're suggesting that Roy's listening into someone's telephone network!"

"Precisely, but no. Roy's brain is trying to interpret the sensory input. Much as our brains grapple with the duck- rabbit, I told you. It always comes back to the duck."

"So if Roy's receiving this frequency, is there any way that we can tap in and hear them? Or maybe even I.D. them?"

"Construct a receiver using that spectrum, it's possible, of course. But it would take months. But it may be possible to redirect the transmissions from his visual centers to his auditory cortex."

"Wait? You want to rewire his brain?" Rue asks worriedly.

"Not without his permission, of course." Walter says.

"It would just be a minor surgery. Minor _brain_ surgery. Emphasis not on the minor." Peeta calls behind Katniss.

"I would need a specific piece of equipment. Magnetic neurostimulator I built in 1983. With a few adjustments, it would work." Walter explains.

"All right, we'll just go back in time and get it for you." Peeta smiles mockingly.

"No need to." Walter says, assuming his son is serious, "It's most likely where I left it 17 years ago. Hidden in a wall in our old house in Cambridge."

* * *

_Mellark's Old House: Cambridge_

"Blast from the past. What's the game plan here? We just gonna knock on the door, ask 'em if we can tear out their walls?" Peeta asks jokingly, referring to the new residents.

"Pretty much." Katniss replies.

"I guess the badge is the 'pretty please' in that equation." Everdeen's lips twitch upward. "There are no lights on."

Katniss sighs, "Guess I'll have to call in. See if I can track down the owner for consent. Peeta begins to jimmy with the lock, "What are you doing?" She asks with wide eyes.

"What? This is barley even a crime. I used to live here!" He smiles as the door swings open.

* * *

_The Lab_

"Normal pupil response. Taking any medications, prescribed or illicit? You can be truthful. I won't judge. In fact, if the answer is no, I may encourage some drug use." Walter asks the frightened man as he pulls and tugs on his eyelids. Roy laughs awkwardly in response to the doctor's antics.

He clears his throat, "Um, no, none."

"Food allergies?"

"None that I'm aware of…"

"Good, good, good… He's ready. Strap him down!" Walter call to Rue.

"Oh, god! Strap me down?" Roy asks.

"There's nothing to be worried about." Rue replies calmly.

Roy scratches the back of his neck, "I guess, uh - it must seem pretty silly... thinking God is talking to me and everything."

"What were you supposed to think?" Rue asks.

"That I was just crazy. I considered that, too."

"It's gotta be sort of a relief, right? Knowing there's a rational explanation?"

"I wouldn't exactly call any of this rational. Do you really think that this is going to help you catch the guys that killed those people on the bus?"

"You're our best lead. No pressure, huh?" And they smile.

* * *

_Back in Cambridge_

Peeta looks at the house, sadly and turns to his partner, "We lived here when I was a kid, but after Walter was institutionalized, my mom couldn't afford the mortgage so we moved down to an apartment in Allston."

"They move around the house, searching, "Where's your mom now?" Katniss asks curiously.

"That's a story for another time…" He sighs and changes the conversation, "So tell me. Of all the possible career choices, how did a pretty girl like you end up in law enforcement?" She smirks and shakes her head.

"Well, I pretty much knew what I wanted to do by the time I was nine."

Peeta laughs, "When I was nine years old, I think I wanted to be a brontosaurus." He begins to move book case out of the way, "You know, they say the psych profiles of cops and criminals are pretty much identical. Ever consider a life of crime?"

"No dental."

Peeta grunts and breaks open the wall, "Of course."

"What?" Katniss asks.

"My mom had this covered up. Because I used to hide in it all the time." He pulls up a dumbwaiter, covered in boxes and stacks of papers.

* * *

_Back at the Lab_

"You'll need to be awake for the procedure, of course. But I'm going to give you a mild sedative to reduce any anxiety." Walter prepped the needle with surprisingly steady hands.

"Doctor Mellark, you look really familiar." He administer the sedative and Roy's eyes begin to droop.

"I hear that a lot - in the mental institution where I lived." His patient smiles on a high, and Walter turns to Rue, "He'll need a moment." Peeta and Katniss enter through the door and Walter's head shoots straight up, "Oh. You've returned. How was the old house? How is Rufus?"

"Well, the house is just like we left, but we put Rufus to sleep almost 20 years ago." Peeta replies.

"Oh. That's terrible news."

"We found your equipment." Katniss tells him.

Walter removes a technical contraption from a box, "Oh, this brings back some memories." He says while inspecting it.

"Memories of what?" Peeta asks hesitantly.

Roy, still high, sits in a chair, happy. The device now resting atop his head. The sound of a drill brings him from his stupor. "I think it's time for intracranial penetration!" Walter shouts, gleefully. He directs his voice to McComb as he brings the drill to his head, "This won't hurt… just feel a touch odd."

"Okay." He nods. And just as they are about to drill screws into the man's brain, a knock startles the group.

A freshman at Harvard pops his head in the door and raises his eyebrows at the sight, "Um… Is this Poli-Sci 101?" He asks uncertainly.

Peeta laughs as Katniss replies, "Not remotely." And the boy leaves.

"Okay, now back!" Walter says. He begins and blood trickles down the man's face. "I need you to keep this dial steady at 60 hertz - 10 gauss until I tell you otherwise. I believe there are clusters of metal in the visual centers of your brain. I'm going to attempt to move them to those regions which process sound. You'll be shown a series of images. I need you to tell me any sensations you experience as you see each image."

"Okay, sounds easy enough."

"First image please?" Walter asks Peeta who then lifts up a photo.

"It's a horse."

"Wonderful. 50 gauss." Roy shouts in pain.

"What the hell was that?" He asks.

"Oh, that was your body's normal muscle response. It's perfectly natural. You may also experience an involuntary bowel movement."

"Great." Roy says sarcastically.

"Next image, son." Peeta rolls his eyes. It's a car.

"Oh, man. Mmm, oh, this is bad. Oh, this is weird. Uh, I- I'm- mmm- I'm tasting, uh, dirt. Uh, no wait, it's uh, gasoline."

"We've reached the gustatory cortex. We're getting close. Next image, please."

"I don't know. It's a beach."

"Well, no sensations at all?" Walter begins to get frustrated.

"I- I don't think so."

"Damn it, don't you feel anything?" He shouts.

"Uh, I'm a little scared." Roys looks around at the others.

"I don't understand. This should be working."

"Walter, take a deep breath. It's gonna be okay." Peeta steps forward and places his hand on his father's shoulder.

"Nuntia adhuc..." Walter smiles.

"You." He turns to Rue, still forgetting her name, "Increase the level to 200 gauss."

"Ita, modo eum collocutus sum." Peeta looks at the man.

"Don't do that! Stop!" He yells to Rue.

"Quando fiet."

Rue looks at him curiously, "What did you say?"

"I don't know. I can hear voices. Una hora locum statuisti."

Peeta calms a bit, "I think that's Latin." He says.

"It is. He just said, um- damn, what's that word? Hora, um- hour. Something's happening in an hour."

Peetalooks surprised, "How in the world can you possibly know that?"

"I majored in linguistics. My Latin's admittedly a bit fuzzy." She smiles sweetly.

"Okay, keep going." Katniss ushers them.

"Ad stationem."

"Ad stationem, that means station."

"Orstreelum-no wait, it's Australem ob."

"Australem means south and then..."

"Commerciam convenimus."

"An exchange is being made. um- An exchange at south station. I think someone's meeting at south station to make an exchange in an hour."

"Bene ubi fuit."

"He just said, 'Good, where was it.'"

"Ab initio in eius corpore fuit."

"From the beginning, on her person. It was on her person. It was on her from the start? Maybe or—"

"She had it on her the whole time." Everdeen bursts, astonished.

"Oh, yeah, that's a possible translation." Katniss runs out the door.

"Hey! Where you going?" Peeta calls after her.

She remembers.

Grant Davidson.

_Just before she leaves, she turns to see Grant pick up the lifeless fingers of his coworker and kisses her hand. Silent tears stream down his face as he cradles her hand with his own._

She was wrong; it wasn't a sign of affection. She runs to the morgue and looks at Eve's body. There is a large incision on her right hand. Just like in McCombs picture…

* * *

_Everdeen's Car_

"Abernathy, listen to me!" She shouts, "Medoza's palm had been cut open. Whatever she had on her, Davidson took it out. She was hiding it in her hand. I'm heading to South Station now. I think he's planning a hand-off at five o'clock."

He sighs , frustrated, "We have to assume Davidson's working for the same people who hit the bus. I'll notify C.I. – but in the meantime, I'm sending the field assist your way."

"But plainclothes only. We don't want to tip him off."

* * *

_South Station/The Lab _

The Agent moves around the cluttered walk ways and answers his phone. "I'ts me.

"Where am I meeting your man?" Roy blurts.

Rue turns to him, "Excuse me?"

"I'm getting something. It's in English. 'We can see you'."

"Outside South Station. We're verifying you haven't been followed." They tell Davidson. "Then we'll instruct you further." Roy speaks aloud.

* * *

"It's Katniss." She speaks into her phone, breathing heavily from running around.

"Hey, Roy's talking again. Are you at South Station?" Peeta says.

"Yeah. Why?"

"So are they."

"Did you get anything else?" She asks, moving around in search of the familiar face.

"They're checking to make sure that Davidson wasn't followed. I think that's it for now."

"Okay."

* * *

"Could I get a drink or something?" Roya asks the trio.

"Yeah. I'll get you a glass of water." Peeta pipes up.

"Go ahead." He begins again. "We're clear on our end. Go inside."

"Here you go." Peeta returns.

" … and head to the Dewey Square exit."

Peeta turns to Rue, "You got that?"

"'How will I recognize the person I'm meeting?' 'He'll recognize you.'" Roy continues.

* * *

"Everdeen?" Peeta asks from the other line.

"Yeah."

"It's happening now. He's headed to the Dewey Square exit." Peeta tells her.

"Got it." She hangs up and call Jo.

"Mason?" She asks.

"We got him. He's at the south end of the terminal." She runs as fast as she can and searches the crown. There he is in a black suit. She runs behind him and takes out her gun. He quickly turns to see the Agent he'd spoken to before, she lifts the weapon and points toward him, "Turn around and put your hands in the air now." He quickens his pace and a man brushes past him and the brief case is taken. She hears a gun fire and Davidson collapses.

"Clear!" Johanna yells from her side of the terminal.

Katniss runs to her target and checks his pulse. "He's been shot. He's not breathing! Call in a MedEvac!" She yells. Katniss looks around and notices something. "The case. They've made the exchange. And he's running."

"Stay with him." Jo orders another agent. They chase him down to the tracks.

"F.B.I.!" Mason yells. The messenger turns.

"Put the case on the ground." Everdeen orders, "Drop the gun now!"

"Put your hands where I can see them." The man complies with all the requests until they hear the whistle of a train and the suspect deliberately steps backwards in front of it to avoid capture.

* * *

_Federal Building_

Katniss inspects the plat circle in her hand. "All that trouble for this. So any idea what it is?" She asks Abernathy.

"Not yet. But I'm hoping our friends at the N.S.A. will be able to tell us."

Katniss scowls, "So eleven innocent people die today, we risk losing another by drilling through his head, all for something we know nothing about?"

Haymitch smirks, "Do you ever smile, Dunham?" She glares at her boss, "We I.D.'d the shooter. " He pulls out the file. "Matthew Ziegler. When we ran his fingerprints, he popped up on two other pattern-related cases. We're digging into his financials, travel records. Linkage, Dunham. Not only can we now put a face to these people, but we know they're communicating. And how. I'd say that's an impressive day's work. Which brings me to this." He places another file into her hands.

"What is it?"

"Of all the models in Roy's apartment, three of them are incidents that we haven't been aware of." Katniss looks up from the papers.

"Pattern cases?"

"It would seem so. Take a look. If you want. Let me know if you have any thoughts."

"I'll do that." She stands to leave,

"I'll see you tomorrow." And on her way out, reassured of her work that day, she smiles.

* * *

_The Lab_

"How're you feeling?" Katniss asks Roy McComb. Rubbing his back as he stands up off the chair, contraption free.

"My head hurts a little, but, um, Dr. Bishop gave me something for the pain."

"Vicodin. That's it. I promise." Walter puts his hands up in defense.

"So no more transmissions?" Katnisss inquires from the man.

"No." He smiles.

Peeta speaks up, "My guess is once you arrived at South Station with the cavalry, they realized the 'Ghost Network' was compromised, and stopped broadcasting on it."

"Well just in case, if you hear anything else, do me a favor, give me a call." She hands the man her card.

"I will. It felt really nice to be able to help." He turns to Walter , "Thank you."

"You're welcome.:

Rue comes and takes McComb's arm, "I have a few release forms I need you to sign, and then I can take you home." He nods his assent and is led away.

peeta sits and the new installment, stretching his fingers. "Everdeen. Any requests?"

"How about some Bach?"

"Bach? No, that's way too stuffy. What you need is some jazz." She smirks and leans against the piano.

"Well I'll take what I can get."

* * *

He walks down an empty corridor, meeting with the grey haired woman. He sits beside her and talks low, "I'm sure you can understand why I don't want to go through channels."

Coin smiles, "If I know you at all, this isn't the only reason you're here. Is this because of our interest in Agent Everdeen?"

"Seems a bit early to be poaching my newest hire, with only a three-case resume under her belt." Abernathy raises his eyebrows.

"I didn't achieve my position without the ability to evaluate someone's talents immediately."

"Neither did I."

"Oh, you feel protective of her, don't you?" Coin smirks.

"I'm in the business of protecting all my agents."

"I want nothing but the best for her."

"Of course you do." He says sarcastically. And hands Alma Coin the chip that was found in Eve Mendoza's hand

She walks back to Massive Dynamic's lab and hands the case to a scientist. "We found another one."

He takes it out and places it gently under a microscope. "Let's see what we have. Well, crystalline structure's intact. No detectable oscillations. This may just be what we need to break the encryption."

"Speaking of which, I'm told you've made progress."

"See for yourself. We finally stabilized the link. We've been pulling information from the disk for the last 72 hours."

"Let me know when it's finished."

Gale Hawthorne's body sits near the scientist, his hand showing a similar cut to that of the DEA Agent's.


End file.
